


The Customer Is Always Wrong (And So Is The Boss)

by torikabori



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Customer Service, Multi, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-25
Updated: 2016-06-05
Packaged: 2018-04-17 03:27:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 45,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4650531
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/torikabori/pseuds/torikabori
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Radiant Garden, according to many, is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. With stunning parks, a grand university, and many thriving businesses, it attracts everyone from tourists to students to young transients hoping for a fresh start.</p>
<p>Of course, it takes a special kind of person to stick around. Such a big place is bound to contain some weirdos, including the remnants of an old mob family, now estranged; a cop named Eraqus Wayfinder and his three young adult children, recently returned; the eccentric employees of a quirky little grocery store called Market XIII; and several overlaps thereof. It's a huge city, yet somehow they all keep running into each other.</p>
<p>(Because everyone needs an absurdly long, self-indulgent modern AU romance, and this is mine.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A City of New Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> L M A O so. I wasn't kidding when I said this would be long. There are a shitzillion other characters and a few more ships, but I dislike tag clogging so I only put the most prominent ones up there. As in, all those people get storylines. I wanted to sell a few more people on Terra/Isa before I started this behemoth, but it begs to be shared, so here we are.
> 
> Buckle in, folks, I hope you enjoy the ride. 8')

"And then sign here," Saix drawled, tapping the page with the end of his pen. The girl in front of him bent over obediently, very carefully tracing _Shion Yamada_ as if trying to use cursive for the first time in her life.

Saix clenched his jaw in frustration. He _hated_ hiring teenagers.

The girl finished and sat up straight. "You also have to write the date," he reminded her, pointing at the blank space.

"O-oh," she mumbled, and did so. Her regular handwriting was neat enough, but so tiny it appeared to be trying to shrink into itself, like she was afraid to let it take up too much room.

"That's all the paperwork. Now there's just the matter of your name." He took a breath. He always felt like an idiot when he went over this part. "Here at Market Thirteen, we use nicknames on our name tags..."

"With the X, right?" She gave him a tiny, nervous smile. "My... my brother told me."

Saix raised an eyebrow. "Then I assume you've already chosen one for yourself?"

She nodded. "I was thinking, um... since Roxas didn't have to change his..."

"Speak up." He hated mumblers, too.

"Um, can I just keep my name and replace the S-H with an X?" She glanced up at him, then immediately looked back down. "It's just, I already do that sometimes, and I'm only part-time a-and it's easier if I just have the one name..."

She trailed off, blushing faintly. Saix shrugged and wrote it down, hoping she would not behave this way in front of the customers. "Done. You will receive your name tag within a few days. As for the rest of the uniform, you'll be expected to wear your company apron every day, and dress according to the guidelines listed in your employee handbook..." As he spoke, he passed her a folder full of all the relevant forms and training instructions, a handbook, and one of the folded black aprons that were kept in a large box in the corner behind his desk. Even the small looked like it would be big on her narrow frame, but she accepted it without protest.

They were interrupted by a loud knock on the open door. "Hey, are you guys done in here yet?" Axel leaned into the room, grinning. "Come on, Saix, you can't keep the fresh meat all to yourself!"

"We were just finishing," Saix informed him, now turning his yellow-eyed glare on his coworker and best friend. "Xion, this is Axel, one of our customer service representatives. He will be training you today. Axel, try to set a good example."

"Whatever you say, Sai'." Axel saluted him, earning another glare. Honestly, one would think he could be a little more professional, especially in front of new hires.

Xion, as she was newly christened, stood carefully. It did not make her much taller. "Um, nice to meet you..."

"What was that? Speak up, kiddo!" Axel laughed. "Don't worry, the rest of us aren't as scary as this guy, and even he's mostly talk. Come on, I'll show you around."

Xion scurried along after him, clutching her folder and apron to her chest as if she feared someone might snatch them. Saix shot Axel a glare over her head, but Axel only rolled his eyes in response, grinning. He clapped the girl on the shoulder and steered her down the short hall toward the store proper, already starting up his spiel about their supposed friendly work environment and where to find things in the back.

Saix sighed and gathered up her papers. He would give this girl a week, maybe a month if she was lucky. She was still seventeen, which to Saix seemed reason enough to at least interview a few other people, but her brother said she was a hard worker and for some reason the store owner thought she was an excellent choice. No matter, though; when she inevitably gave Saix reason enough to get rid of her, he would make his case, and maybe then Xemnas would allow him to actually do his job as front-end manager and pick the child's replacement.

He was just filing away Xion's legal documents when the door to the employee area banged open and raised voices alerted him to the approach of his coworkers. He grimaced when he realized who it was.

"Unbelievable, the _audacity_ \--"

"One would think that such an attitude towards a customer--"

"As opposed to such an attitude towards your superior!"

"Oh? And how can that be, when we work in separate departments of this fine establishment?"

Vexen stomped into the room first, Marluxia striding in more gracefully after. "Saix!" Vexen nearly shouted. "Where is Xemnas? I need to speak with him right this second!"

"He's not in today," Saix told him flatly. "As you well know."

"Obviously I do not, since no one bothers to tell me anything around here! _Including_ when a customer is promised special favors, and when items from _my department_ are supposedly on sale, and--"

"For the sake of accuracy," Marluxia cut in, "it was a price match, which may I remind you we are authorized to do, particularly when a customer is in distress and the company hopes to retain their patronage--"

" _Authorized!_ " Vexen looked about to pop a vein. "As if you were in charge! I am the _deli manager;_ you are little more than a glorified cashier, and I will not be disrespected in this manner--"

"If you children are finished squabbling," Saix said severely, glaring at them both, "As the only manager in today, I outrank you both, and you will not raise your voice in my office." He steepled his fingers and turned to the louder party first. "Vexen, are you honestly throwing a tantrum because someone in customer service decided to... provide service to a customer?"

Vexen drew himself up. "The pricing of deli items is my job," he began, "And this particular customer was being rude to me."

"Answer the question," Saix snapped.

Vexen grumbled something unintelligible while Marluxia gave him a satisfied smile.

"That's what I thought. Be glad Xemnas is not in; this is not worth bringing to his attention. Now get back to work, unless you are so irrelevant that the deli can manage itself without you."

"Hardly," Vexen huffed. He turned on his heel and stalked out.

Marluxia looked about to follow, impossibly pleased with himself, but Saix held up a hand. "Just a moment."

He searched the man's face. Marluxia looked far too innocent. That alone spoke volumes: Marluxia was never innocent. "Whatever is the problem, acting manager?"

"The problem is that I know you, and I know this is more than a price match. What on earth did you do this time?"

Marluxia shrugged. "A customer was very upset after her experience at the deli. It's so unfortunate that her harsh words were repeated to sensitive ears, but I only agreed with what she said to make her happy. Isn't that what excellent customer service is about?"

Saix narrowed his eyes. "Harsh words were repeated, hm?"

Marluxia sighed in mock regret. "There may have been some comment about a 'huffy blond on the rag,' if I recall correctly. But isn't the customer always right?"

"No," Saix said flatly. "Marluxia, while we appreciate your ability to handle difficult customers, you may not do it by deliberately provoking your coworkers. And I've had it with the constant in-fighting between deli and the customer service desk. The next time I hear of company time being wasted over something so petty, I'm cutting the hours of everyone involved. Is that clear?"

Marluxia bowed his head and smiled, though blue eyes were frosty under his bangs. "Clear as crystal, sir. It won't happen again."

"See that it doesn't. Now get out."

Marluxia exited the office with some degree of dignity, and Saix waited until he heard the outer door swing shut before he relaxed.

Sighing loud and long, he leaned back in his chair. He was not cut out for this. As much as he liked to not have to deal with customers anymore, particularly the snooty type who usually shopped in this area of the city once the students were gone, he was still not entirely sure this promotion had been good for him. He hated managing people, particularly _these_ people, and the commitment made him uncomfortable.

The slightly higher salary was great, of course, especially with so many student loans hanging over his head, but he had not moved to Radiant Garden and earned his undergrad at one of the best universities in the country just so he could lay down his roots at the tiny grocery store near his tiny shared apartment.

It was not a bad life; he knew that. But it was not the life he wanted.

Saix looked up at the clock. It was too early for his lunch break, and he still had to order Xion's new name tag and send that to the printer, as well as a list of sale prices, not to mention this week's payroll... he had no right to be so introspective at this hour. He shook himself out of it and got back to work.

* * *

 

"Alright, so you've already seen the employees-only area, and you've been in the demons' lair." Axel chuckled at his own joke, and Xion gave him a nervous smile in return. She was not yet sure what to make of this tall, overly casual man, who had hair like fire and bright green eyes that she was too intimidated to meet directly.

Axel went on, "We've got three managers from hell: Xemnas, Xigbar, and Saix. You met the last one just now, and incidentally he's the only person here who gives a shit if this place functions. That's pretty much the only thing he cares about, so do your job, don't cause trouble and he'll get off your dick eventually. Back there--" He pointed to a large set of double-doors. "That's the stock room. Xigbar's in charge of that, and you won't really need to go in there, which is good because it smells like cigarettes and mildew. There's a bathroom to your left, and the break room to your right. We have a coffee machine and a microwave and a fridge, and only two of those work at any given time."

He pushed that door open so Xion could poke her head in. It was a fairly small room, with two little round tables and some folding chairs. In one of them sat a young man wearing earbuds and munching on a granola bar. His eyes, mostly obscured by hair that was swept dramatically to one side, were glued to a Kindle. His music was so loud that Xion could hear it a little.

"That one there is Zexion. He works in the deli. Yo, Zexion! Meet the newbie!"

Axel had to wave his arms before Zexion noticed them. When he did, he only paused chewing for a moment, gave Xion a thoroughly unimpressed once-over, and went back to his Kindle.

Axel sighed and closed the door. "Don't take it personally," he advised the trainee. "He's just a little anti-social. But he's mostly harmless. Anyway, here's the door to the main area, so do you have any questions before we enter the danger zone?"

Xion shook her head. She had a lot of questions, actually, like when they got breaks and how long they were and who was allowed to use which appliances, but she could ask Roxas later. She just wanted to get this over with before she said or did something horribly awkward that would make Axel dislike her as much as Saix and Zexion already did.

"Well, okay then, no need to chatter at me," Axel chuckled, and opened the second set of double-doors to the main area.

Immediately the noise of the bustling store hit her ears. Axel led her immediately to the left, pointing out as he did the aisle numbers and what they had: cleaning and pet supplies, canned goods and snacks, cereals and breads, baking supplies... Xion bit her lip, trying to memorize it. She just knew she was going to forget something important.

"Down this side of the store is frozen food, and on the other end is produce. And in this aisle is beer, and also Demyx, big surprise there."

"Hey!" Another young man, this one with a blond mohawk, turned to grin at them. "Oh, this is the new kid, huh? 'Bout time we got some extra help. Axel, they wanted to put me on a register!"

"Wow. Bullet dodged, huh? Wouldn't want you touching the money."

"Dick." The man waved a sticker gun threateningly at Axel, though he was still smiling. "Anyway, kid, welcome to the team. I'm Demyx. You're Roxas's kid sister, right?"

"Yes," she mumbled. "I'm Xion."

"Nice choice. Have fun doing the actually tough job-- I'll be chilling out with my pal Xiggy in stocking. Speaking of which, Axel, do you know when he'll be in next? He said he had some cookies for me, and I really wanted them today--"

"Shh, dude, not in front of our only innocent soul. You'll corrupt her before her time." Axel nudged Xion onward. "He should be around tomorrow, but feel free to go to the back and ask Saix. I'm sure he'd love to answer any questions regarding Xigbar and his baked goods." He laughed as Demyx shuddered for some reason. "See you around, man. C'mon, Xion, up here is the deli..."

He led her to the end of the aisle, where there was a glass counter full of meats and cheeses, and bowls of macaroni, chicken, and tuna salad. Behind it was a giant of a man, nearly seven feet tall with huge muscular arms and a face like a bulldog, slicing a ham as quickly as he could. A short line was forming on the other side of the counter, behind a haughty gray-haired woman who shouted demands for a pound of this, two pounds of that, and a medium tub of another thing, three-quarters full. She pointed each time, though the deli man could not possibly see her hands.

Axel kept his distance this time. "The big guy back there is Lexaeus. He's the rare breed around these parts who just wants an honest day's work and doesn't get involved in any drama." Axel scanned the deli area and frowned. "Yo, Lex, where's Vexen?"

"In the back, you just missed him," the big man grunted, deftly turning off the machine and weighing his pile of sliced ham. "Is this right, ma'am?"

The customer narrowed her eyes at the displayed weight and price. "That's point-one-three pounds over," she said accusingly. "Are you trying to cheat me?"

Lexaeus removed a slice.

"Now it's less than a pound! Can't you people do anything right?"

Lexaeus carefully ripped the slice in half and placed one half on the pile.

"Disgusting! Oh, don't bother trying to fix it, just cancel my entire order. I'm taking my business elsewhere, if this is how you fools do things!"

"Sorry to hear that," Lexaeus said in a monotone, and shoved several piles of already-cut meats to the side. "Next!"

"Wait, I didn't mean--"

"Move over, lady!" A teenager hurried up to the counter. "Listen, here's what I need..." She started reading off a list, ignoring the indignant complaints of the first customer.

Axel tugged Xion back. "Looks like he's busy," he muttered. "Let's get around this line and I'll show you the rest..."

"Does that happen a lot?" Xion asked quietly, once they were out of earshot of the deli counter.

"Huh?"

"Customers like that," she mumbled, still a little horrified. She had hoped her brother was exaggerating when he had complained of people like the gray-haired lady, but evidently it was true. Suddenly she wished she had never applied for this job. No way could she deal with people like that.

"Eh, they're depressingly common, yeah. But don't worry, you and Roxas have a secret weapon. Which is right here!" He showed her the counter next to the deli, a place with a phone, two notebooks and a cash register, labelled 'customer service.' Behind the desk, a young woman with slicked-back blonde hair and heavy eye makeup worked alone, furiously scribbling in one of the notebooks while her register station printed a long receipt.

"Axel," she called in a singsong voice that sounded oddly threatening, "I'm in dire need of a man's touch back here."

"That's Larxene," Axel told Xion. "And I'm very certain that she does."

Larxene thanked a customer and handed him a couple of receipts stapled together, then once he looked away she turned to Axel, her eyes murderous. "I have fifteen returns to process before I'm allowed to take a break, and Marly's occupied. Now, I'm sure you don't want me to abandon him and you up here during the lunch rush, hmm? No? Then get your lazy ass behind the counter and help me. Hello!" She snapped back to friendliness as a little girl approached her counter.

"I need peanut butter for a fish!" the girl yelled, jumping up so Larxene could see her.

"Aisle three, sweetie." Larxene pointed and the girl went. "Axel," she said in the same cheerful tone, "get back to your job or I will throw the returns book at your head."

"You'll only be hurting yourself with that little move," Axel told her. "Anyway, Xion, if anyone gives you too much trouble, just send them here. Team Handsome will deal with it."

"Sorry, I heard myself mentioned?" A man with fluffy pink hair and a very pretty face appeared behind Axel. "Keeping the ladies all to yourself, I see," he said silkily, looking Xion over with interest.

"Marly!" Larxene called in that scary singsong voice, setting her notebook aside yet again as the phone began to ring and two customers shoved one another in a battle for her attention.

"Duty calls," the pretty man sighed, and slipped behind the counter. He picked up the phone with a flourish. "Market Thirteen, how may I be of assistance?"

Axel chuckled and led Xion onward. "So that's customer service: me, Larxene, and Marluxia. We're pretty much the best and worst people you'll ever meet. That guy stacking shopping baskets by the door is Xaldin--" He indicated a tall, broad-shouldered man with long braids and thick sideburns. "--and he's kind of a dick, but he won't bother you if you don't bother him. He mostly does maintenance stuff. Over on the registers is Luxord, who sometimes helps Xaldin and sometimes does cashier duty if he's needed-- he's chill enough, not much to warn about-- and over here is some weirdo I've never seen before."

He said the last part a little louder, so the cashier could hear it. Roxas looked up from where he was dragging items across his scanner, fast and efficient as a well-oiled machine, and stuck his tongue out at Axel.

"Hey, jerk, come help me out," he called over his shoulder.

"'Fraid I can't," Axel sighed, "I have to finish the tour for the little one, she'll simply be lost without me."

"Xion, kick him in the shins for me!" Roxas was grinning at them as his fingers punched in a code, apparently from muscle memory. "Your total is sixty-eight dollars and twenty-five cents, sir."

"Please don't kick me in the shins," Axel joked as they cleared the busy area. "You've barely said a word, I don't know what you're capable of."

Xion gave him a tiny, shy smile. "Hopefully lots of stuff."

"It speaks, only to threaten me! What have I done to deserve this, oh Lord?" Axel looked skyward, sighing dramatically.

"Oh, no, I-I didn't mean--"

"Chill." Axel squeezed her shoulder. "Seriously, kid, lighten up. I'm not gonna bite your head off."

"Yes, sir."

"And don't call me sir. I'm way too young for that."

"Sorry, sir." She winced. "I mean, sorry."

Axel sighed again and rubbed the back of his head. "...Right. Well, you'll get used to this place eventually. Let's see, what else is there... you haven't met Xemnas, Xigbar, or Vexen yet. I guess I could try to tell you what to expect, but honestly, those three are best experienced firsthand. Much like the rest of us goddamn weirdos." He gestured to the store at large. "So that's about it for our humble madhouse. Anything else you want to know? Burning questions for me? Stuff you want me to go over again? Now's your chance to speak up, before you go to the back with a training manual and I go once more into the breach."

Xion squeezed her folder and apron, feeling overwhelmed. When Roxas had said his store only had thirteen employees, including the owner, and that cashiering was easy, this was not at all what she had expected. She chewed on her lip, watching her brother speed through customers. She didn't know if she could do that, or talk to that many people, but Roxas had gotten her this job, and she at least owed it to him to try.

"I can start training," she said miserably, and let Axel direct her back to the cave with the unfriendly deli boy and the terrifying, yellow-eyed manager.

* * *

 

At eleven o'clock on a Wednesday night, after several hours of running to and fro between a stuffy, smelly Pirate Pizza and the farthest reaches of its delivery range, Terra was finally going home. He had his backpack out, his reflector vest folded and stowed away, and he was just getting ready to make a dash for the door when the stout man at the phone called to him.

"Terry, wait!"

Terra bit back a groan; it was never a good thing when he got stopped on his way out.

"We've got one more for you, if you don't mind," Smee told him, apparently oblivious to both the time and Terra's current state of dress.

"I was supposed to go home an hour ago," he said flatly. "The other guy can do it." Their late-night delivery man might be slow, but he was rarely busy enough for that to be a problem, and Terra was not paid overtime. In fact he was barely paid at all; he had been here three weeks and there were still no plans to get him on the books, which meant he could not tell his family about this job, which made extra-long shifts even more awkward. He needed to go home.

"But the customer asked for you specifically!" Terra did not like the smile on that chubby pink face. He also knew he had not been here long enough for customers to start asking for him. Smee held out the fax for an online order, indicating the notes section. "See?"

Terra frowned. "Send your cutest delivery boy," he read, to a chorus of snorts and guffaws from their nearby coworkers. "Just send the other guy. Or send the boss, he'd like that."

"Just take the compliment, lad!" The 'other guy' in question, a gruff man in his thirties with heavily sloped shoulders and a few missing teeth, clapped Terra on the back. He did not seem at all bothered by the consensus that Terra was cutest. "What's the name on that there paper?"

"Princess L," Terra read with distaste.

"Ha! Some lonely college freshman, I'll wager. Why don't you just clock out now, take this on your way home, and see if you get lucky?" The big man grinned wolfishly.

"She's probably drunk." Terra wished he could radiate disapproval the way his father could.

"Then luck is in your favor!" Smee pushed one of the hot pizza carriers into his hands. "What's the problem, Terry?"

"Aye, lad, are ye worried about yer performance?"

"No," Terra grumbled, disgusted at the lot of them. He was barely heard over their raucus laughter. Smee and one of the men cleaning the tables were still looking at him funny, though, so he added, "This just isn't the way I like to meet girls," even as he accepted the pizza carrier and donned his reflector vest once more. He may as well get it over with; they would hopefully stop teasing, and it was probably better for this poor woman if none of his boorish coworkers were sent to interact with her.

By the time he reached her apartment, though, he almost wished he hadn't. It was in a decent part of town, near some of the university dorms, and in the opposite direction of the bridge he had to cross to get home. But he had the pizza, and he had already handed over the cash for it, so he had no choice now.

His destination was on the fifth floor of a small apartment complex, above a fast food place. He had to press the button for 5D twice before he got a response. "Pizza delivery," he said into the intercom, hoping this one worked. He had learned quickly that many of them did not.

Once he was buzzed in, he began the long trudge up the stairs, willing himself forward with the promise of sleep soon after. Of course there was no elevator. 5D was at the end of a narrow hall, a nondescript door whose beige paint was halfway peeled off. Terra took a deep breath, then knocked quickly.

"Pizza's here," he said again. "For... the princess." Did this count as sexual harassment? He wasn't sure.

"One moment," a voice inside answered-- a man's voice. Terra had just enough time to mentally kick himself for agreeing to this before the door opened.

Before him was, indeed, a young man. "How much do we owe you?" he asked, sounding bored as he opened a wallet.

It took Terra a moment to find his voice. It was not the outlandish pale blue hair that struck him, nor the prominent X-shaped scar on the man's face, nor even the fact that it was a _man_ greeting him, and the voice cursing at the TV inside was also definitely male-- no, the detail that had Terra absolutely unsettled was the pair of yellow eyes staring up at him. Of all the things to run into when he had barely been here a month...

The customer raised an eyebrow at the lack of response. Terra fumbled to get the form out. "Uh, s-sixteen fifty-three. Are you... Princess L?" The stranger was certainly pretty enough, or would be if it were not for those terrible eyes.

But the man just gave a derisive snort. "That would be my roommate. He's occupied, so I'll sign. Do you have change?" He held out a twenty.

While Terra tried to dig through both pockets with one hand, the customer took the paper.

"Pen?" he prompted. Terra felt like an idiot and went digging again. By the time he fished it out, there was a disapproving frown on the customer's face. "Is this really what he wrote?"

He held up the notes section, where "ur cutest delivery boy ;)" had been requested. Terra nodded.

"Ugh. Keep the change, then. No wonder you're looking at me like that. Lea!" he snapped, making Terra jump. That yellow glare was now focused on someone else, though. "Stop harassing the pizza man!"

"Oh yeah, is he cute?"

"He's _embarrassed_. One would think you would treat other service people with more respect." He turned back to Terra and accepted the pen, scrawling an unnaturally neat signature under the price. Then he paused, thinking, and took out the wallet again. "You know what? Take this, too. I apologize on his behalf." And he gave Terra a few more dollars.

"Hey, you better not be spending all my ones!" his roommate called from inside.

"It's your fee for being a jackass," the yellow-eyed man shot back.

"Thank you," Terra mumbled awkwardly, handing over the food and accepting the extra cash. This must be a fifty percent tip. "Wait," he added, unable to stop himself, "before I go, I have to ask... your eyes..."

"Halloween Town Costumers," the man said before the question was even finished, as if he heard it all the time. "Ask for the optical department, they sell both prescription and non. Tell them Isa sent you and you might get a discount. But probably not."

"Oh." So they were contacts; that was a relief. Terra smiled awkwardly. "Well, uh, enjoy your pizza."

"...Thank you," Isa said, and shut the door. As soon as the lock clicked, Terra could hear him and his roommate bickering.

Terra tried to gather himself as he made his way back down the stairs and eventually out the door. Had that been flirting? He was painfully unaware of how these things worked.

Oh well. It was probably just a stupid prank. No one had meant anything by it. There was no reason anyone would _know_. Especially not customers he had never met before, or coworkers at a job he had barely gotten used to.

Secure in that knowledge, he got back on his bike and began the long journey home.

* * *

 

Ven bit his lip when he saw the incoming Skype call. This already? Couldn't he wait at least another week?

Eh, he might as well get it over with. He closed the Netflix tab and pressed "answer with video."

"Hi, Ven!" Sora's face filled the screen, and Ven couldn't help but smile back at him. Sora was infectious like that. "How've you been, baby brother?"

"Fine. Mostly still tired from the move." Ven wrinkled his nose. "I thought I told you not to call me a baby."

"Sorry, force of habit! Oooh, are you in your new room? Can I see it?"

Ven shifted to the side and turned the monitor so Sora could get a better look. "This is just the family computer in the living room, actually. My room has even more boxes."

"Wow, it's big! Are those curtains new?"

"Nah. They were just in storage for a while because the windows in the last place didn't fit them. C'mon, you know we don't do _new_ stuff around here." Ven frowned at himself; he had not meant to sound so bitter. "Anyway, what's up? You're kinda interrupting my summer anime binge."

"What, I can't ask after my little brother? We never talk anymore." Sora pouted, but even through the fuzzy Skype window, Ven could tell he wasn't serious. Sometimes he wondered if Sora was ever serious.

"Well, we got our new furniture today. My fingers and arms are still sore and my legs feel like putty, and I never want to look at a dresser or that dining room table ever again. But other than that, yeah, I'm good." He leaned back, hands behind his head. "I'll be less good when I have to go back to school, but the best thing about people treating me like a little kid is that I don't have to get a summer job. It'll be Netflix and ice cream until September!"

Sora laughed. "C'mon, Ven, even I know Eraqus won't let you do that."

"Shh. Netflix will happen at the library, and for all he knows I'll be studying there."

"Studying the science of Digimon, right?"

Ven rolled his eyes. "I don't watch that kiddie stuff anymore." He actually did not watch all that much television in general, but Sora did not have to know how he would actually be spending his summer.

The slight against Digimon just made Sora laugh again. "Well, I do! I love catching up on everything we missed out on. And you should see some of the kids' stuff that's out today, like this Steven Universe cartoon, it's just the sort of thing we probably would've loved if we'd been able to--"

"Sora," Ven interrupted, suddenly wary, "this isn't going to turn into one of _those_ talks, is it?"

"...No," Sora said after a pause, smiling apologetically. "Sorry, Ven. It's just, I think about that stuff a lot, you know?"

"I know."

"And if you ever do want to talk about anything, even if it's not--"

" _Sora_."

"Sorry, sorry!" He held his hands up in surrender. Ven noticed a new tattoo on the inside of his arm, but decided against bringing it up. Ven didn't understand why he had wound up with the one family who was strict about that stuff. "Hey," the older boy said, hopefully changing the subject, "have you heard from anyone else lately? I hear Roxas and Shion are both living in Radiant Garden now, too."

"Cool," Ven said with a shrug. "Maybe I'll text them at some point. Once we're all settled here, you know." He said it to make Sora happy. Ven had never been particularly close to his other biological siblings, even his identical twin; Roxas had always been distant with all of them, and seemed like kind of a jerk, while Shion was so painfully shy that talking to her at all was a bit of a chore. Even Sora, for all that he tried his best to keep a relationship going, was not nearly as close to Ven as he probably thought. He certainly could not compete with Ven's adoptive family-- his true family, as far as Ven was concerned.

After a long, awkward pause Sora added, a bit too casually, "Vanitas still lives there, too."

Ven's mood immediately soured. "Well, that's great for him. Sora, what's this really about?"

"Nothing! I just wanted to catch up!"

"If this is another dumb plot to get us all to hang out, I swear to god--"

"It's not, Ven, I promise it's not! Look, don't be upset, I'm sorry I even brought it up. He doesn't even know you're there, or at least he won't hear it from me. It's a big city and you'll probably never run into each other."

"You better hope we don't," Ven told him heatedly. "For his sake, not mine."

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry, Ven." And he truly looked it. If nothing else, Sora was sincere in his desire to not upset the people he cared about, so Ven supposed he could let it go. For now.

"How are things on your end?" Ven asked, trying to sound more interested than he really was. "Are you still seeing that guy from your biology class, or whatever it was?"

"Riku, yeah." Sora's eyes practically lit up at the name. "You really gotta meet him, he's such a sweetheart and I think you'd really get along..."

Ven let his brother ramble. Sora was always going on about some new friend or partner he had-- and somehow he had such a wide and varied collection of both that there was always someone new. Ven forgot their names pretty quickly. He was a little surprised that Riku had lasted so long.

"Well, it's getting kinda late," Ven commented after a few minutes. "I hate to cut this off, but..."

"But you gotta get back to your anime, and you're tired of my babbling." Sora chuckled. "Don't worry, I get it. Get some rest and I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Okay."

"And send me pictures of the new place when you can!"

"Alright."

"And let me know if there's a good time for me to visit, because I really wanted to be there for your birthday at least--"

"Good night, Sora!"

"Good night, baby bro!"

Ven stuck his tongue out while he ended the call. He loved Sora, of course, and sometimes he did miss the energy and constant affection, but it was just a bit... much, sometimes. Not to mention that Ven had enough people trying to baby him, without Sora's extra attentive flavor of it.

"You're still up?"

Ven turned; Terra was leaning in the doorway from the kitchen, yawning. "I should ask you the same thing," Ven told him, eyebrows raised. "Don't you have a job interview in the morning?"

"Not until noon." Terra rubbed his neck. He looked utterly exhausted. And he was still in his workout gear.

"Didn't you run into Aqua? She took the car to the gym, she could've given you a ride home if you're that tired..."

"I must've just missed her," Terra muttered. "And I like biking home. Anyway..." He heaved his big backpack over his shoulder. "I call dibs on the shower first. If you're still up when Aqua gets back, tell her to leave the car keys where I can find them this time." Terra yawned again and began dragging himself up the stairs, his bike helmet bouncing against his hip with every step.

Ven sighed and leaned back again, hands behind his head. They still weren't even done moving in, and yet he seemed to be the only one who was not actively looking for ways to be out of the house. Even their father was already working overtime at his new position, and kept doing the same hi-Ven-g'night-Ven routine that Terra just had.

Well, Ven had been hoping to at least get settled for a bit before he started looking for his own activities, but it seemed he would be doing the settling alone, and that was no fun. Resigning himself to a long night of slow internet on his own crappy laptop, he logged off of the family computer and went upstairs.

Tonight, he would plan his route. Tomorrow, he would go exploring. Out of all of them, Ven was the only one who had not visited Radiant Garden at all during the years when they had moved away; it was about time he found out what the city really had to offer.

* * *

 

It was near midnight when Aqua finally made it to the gym. She had strained her back moving furniture today, and to be honest she was not entirely up for even an easy round on the treadmill. But if she let herself skip now then she would just keep skipping, so here she was.

There was only one other vehicle here, a motorcycle that probably belonged to an employee. Aqua pulled in a couple spaces over, grunting with pushing the family station wagon's fourteen-year-old gear shift into place.

The gym she had chosen was small, with little choice of equipment but low prices and long hours. Apparently most of its clientele were college students-- once they all came back in the fall, Aqua might have to find somewhere else, but for now this would do.

There was indeed just a single bored employee at the front desk, a woman about Aqua's age with thin arched eyebrows and a high ponytail. She hardly looked up from her phone, except to check Aqua's ID and tap the sign-in sheet with a low sigh.

"Long day?" Aqua asked, trying to break the silence.

"Like you wouldn't believe. It'd be shorter if you night owls didn't insist on working up a sweat right before bedtime, but who am I to judge?" She waved a hand toward the gym floor and sat back in her seat. "Whatever, go on and justify my paycheck."

Aqua thanked her awkwardly and made her way over to the treadmills. It turned out there was one other patron here, a punky-looking kid facing the wall over by the weights, but she chose not to try making conversation again. Instead she mounted a treadmill and took her time to set up her station just so, with the water bottle half-opened, a timer ready on her phone, the speed and incline adjusted properly and her workout playlist blasting in her ears.

Aqua did not often get time to herself, time to tune out the world and think-- or not think, as she needed. Today she chose the latter, timing her pounding footsteps to every other beat as she lost herself to her favorite eighties pop. All the worries of this month-- moving, getting settled, trying to find work in this huge city-- it all faded away with each step. She had needed this.

After fifteen minutes her phone timer buzzed, and she snapped out of her reverie to adjust her speed. It was only then that she noticed her fellow gym patron to her left, two machines over; he seemed to be glancing at her every now and then.

Aqua bit back a sigh of irritation and resolved to ignore the kid unless he said something to her directly. She was not about to play some punk's passive-aggressive pick-up game, especially during her treasured alone time.

But the young man was silent, and so eventually she let her guard down. Come to think of it, there was something familiar about him; an old classmate, perhaps? She had hoped not to run into anyone from her teenage years in this big city, at least not for a long while. Thinking she had feigned ignorance long enough for him to get the message and not bother her, she decided to indulge her curiosity. Casually she stood on the sides of the treadmill and adjusted her shoelaces as a cover for getting a better look.

Upon a second glance the boy did not look as young as she thought. About a head shorter than her, he had a muscular physique and ran with good form. He seemed about the right age to be one of her old varsity friends, but she had never known anyone with gauges in his ears, several cartilage rings, another two on his eyebrow and some stylized heart tattoo on his shoulder. His spiky black hair seemed familiar, she supposed, though it was a popular style these days. Still, there was something unmistakable in his profile, something she knew...

She got her answer when he suddenly stopped, stood on the edges of his own machine, and turned to face her. It was his smile that did it-- a horribly familiar, taunting smirk that seemed to light up his liquid gold eyes.

"Aqua Wayfinder. I thought it was you!" He seemed amused, which revolted her.

"Vanitas," she said coolly. Out of every single person from her past that she could possibly have run into, why did it have to be him?

"Long time no see," he went on. "How's the family?" He said the last word with ill-disguised contempt.

"We're doing very well, thank you." Aqua kept her voice blandly polite, but something probably showed on her face, because Vanitas was still smirking at her as she popped out her earbuds and turned off the treadmill. It seemed she would have to find a different gym a bit sooner than she thought. Perhaps she would go back to five A.M. solo runs in the meantime.

She threw the last of her things in her bag and gave Vanitas her sweetest, emptiest smile. "It was nice seeing you," she lied. "Good evening."

"Oh, the pleasure's all mine. Give my regards to the fam." Vanitas hopped back on his treadmill, still grinning.

Aqua strode over to the desk and signed herself out, without bothering even to stretch or change out of her sweaty clothes. The young woman at the counter lowered her phone and frowned. "Is my friend over there bothering you?"

"Don't worry about it," Aqua told her, giving that bland smile again. Then, since the lady still looked concerned, she added, "We just have a history, is all. I wasn't expecting to run into him."

"Ah." The woman relaxed again. She had that knowing look on her face that said she was assuming far too much, but Aqua did not particularly feel like correcting her. If people wanted to assume that freak over there was an ex-boyfriend of hers, it was far easier on everyone than explaining the complicated truth. Even if it made her stomach churn to think about it.

Once she climbed into the station wagon, she took a long moment to just sit and breathe. It would not be wise to get on the road when she was this riled up-- or go home, for that matter. Dealing with Vanitas on her own, even in one casual encounter, was bad enough. She emphatically did not want her father or either of her brothers involved. And as unobservant as they might be sometimes, if she went home this quickly, in this mood, they were sure to notice that something was up.

Sighing in resignation, Aqua consulted her phone. It was, after all, a big city; surely she could find somewhere to be for the next hour or so.

By the time she settled on a 24-hour diner and started the car up again, she was a bit calmer. Radiant Garden was indeed a very big place, even when the students were gone, and she would likely never run into Vanitas again. And anyway, he did not seem to know she would be there either. There likely wasn't anything behind it; she was just a bit unlucky. Nothing to worry about.

Besides, even if he was still around and did mean trouble, things were different now. They were all older, and wiser, and moving always meant a new chapter in one's life. They might find some familiar faces, but this was still their fresh start.


	2. Strange Encounters With Strange People

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The family has an awkward breakfast, Xion's training continues, Aqua and Roxas each make plans, and Terra rescues a maiden.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time for another quick round of Spot the Cameo! Also making an appearance in this chapter: really obvious references to the real-life city I based Radiant Garden on. lololol
> 
> And to those who have already left me such sweet comments, thank you so much!! The speed of this update is dedicated to u <3

It seemed Eraqus was the only one truly awake this morning.

The four of them had been in this house for about half a month now, yet this was the first time the Wayfinder family had all sat down for breakfast in their new dining room together.

"Someone pass the bacon," Ventus yawned, scratching his head. "Please," he added, glancing at his father. Instead of responding, Terra simply pushed the plate in his brother's direction, just as slow and haphazard in his movements.

Eraqus cleared his throat. "So, Terra, Aqua, how are the job searches going?" he asked, hoping to break the silence. He had thought the awkward, quiet meals might be done with once his children were all out of high school.

They paused eating; Aqua answered first. "I have an interview at the library later this week. After that I have a few more things I can look into if I don't hear back from them."

"Good plan. Terra?"

Terra shrugged. "I have a pile of applications to get through. When those are done I'll find more."

"Don't forget to follow up, and try to speak to a manager. When I was your age, most work I got happened because I simply walked in and asked the right person. It may surprise you what can come of a simple request."

"Wasn't that like a million years ago?" Ven asked, grinning over his orange juice. "Ow!"

Terra had elbowed him in the side. "We know, Dad."

"And if you need me to put in a good word for you at the station, or the academy," Eraqus added, ignoring the good-natured slight from his youngest, "my offer still stands."

"We'll keep it in mind, thank you." Aqua responded politely while Terra and Ventus prodded each other under the table. "Should I make more coffee? Terra, you look like you could use a little more."

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Thanks, Aqua." He managed to poke Ventus under his ribs, making the younger boy squeal.

"Settle down, boys." Terra and Ventus obeyed, the older a little ashamed, and it was truly a marvel how quickly they went back to looking half-asleep. Eraqus decided to try again. "Ventus," he ventured, "how is your summer reading? I trust the move did not upset your schedule too much?"

"It's fine." Ventus shrugged. "Kinda boring."

"Have you contacted any of your future classmates yet?"

"Why? I won't get to meet them for months and it's not like I'll actually be living with any of them." His eyes were fixed on a piece of bacon he seemed to be trying to saw in half with the side of his fork. Sometimes Eraqus worried about that boy.

"I ask because it is important that you have friends your own age. Not to mention study partners, people you can contact if you miss a lecture, or--"

"Does anyone need anything from the kitchen?" Aqua called, to an immediate chorus of "no" from her brothers.

"We're fine, thank you," Eraqus called back, giving up. Plainly there would be no family bonding time before noon. "Could you check the time for me, please?"

Aqua soon reappeared with a fresh pot of coffee. "Eight thirty-six," she said at a more reasonable volume. "What time do you have to leave for work, again?"

"Actually I'd better get going now," Eraqus sighed. He had hoped to reach the precinct by nine, and he was still unaccustomed to his new route, not to mention the traffic he always encountered on the bridge at this hour. "I hate to leave you with my dishes, but--"

"Don't worry about it." Terra was already halfway to his feet. "I'll back out the station wagon. It's Ven's turn to load the dishwasher, anyway." He ruffled Ventus's hair, much to the younger boy's indignity, and followed Eraqus to the garage.

"You know, Terra," Eraqus felt compelled to add, once they were alone, "That offer still stands for you as well. If you need me to put in a recommendation for you at work, I'm sure even with a record there's something they can offer you."

"It's fine, Dad, really." Terra fiddled with the car keys, not quite looking him in the eye. "I can find something on my own."

"I would just hate to see you turn down an opportunity. Think of your future--"

"It's fine." Terra had already ducked into the car, and now busied himself with starting it up and backing the clunky old machine out of the driveway before his father could say anything more.

There was nothing else to do, so Eraqus got into his police cruiser, feeling strangely guilty. Once upon a time his bright little boy and girl had said they wanted to be just like him when they grew up. Now they were grown, and it seemed they wanted neither his job nor even his help. He often wished he could be one of those fathers who wondered why his children had changed, when it was only the effects of adolescence; instead he knew exactly why they found his life repulsive, and he could not entirely blame them. Somehow that was worse.

He waved to Terra as he exited the driveway, but Terra was adjusting something on the dashboard and did not see.

Eraqus drove toward the bridge that would take him into the city proper, trying to cast off his worry. This was merely an adjustment period, nothing more. As soon as they were all settled, with Terra and Aqua employed and Ventus back in school, it would be fine. They just had to find normalcy, and everyone would get back on track.

* * *

 

"Want to give it a shot?" Roxas asked Xion, on her third day of training.

Xion looked up from her bagging station in mild alarm. "I'm not supposed to be on the register for the first week..."

"Well, how are you supposed to learn if you don't ever try it for yourself?" He was already backing away from the tiny cashier's booth. "That's what Axel told me, anyway-- the best way to learn something is just by doing it, until you get it memorized." He grinned at the last word for some reason.

"I just don't want to get in trouble," Xion mumbled, even as she shuffled into place. She was terrible at saying no.

"Alright! So, you've just been put on the register. What's step one?"

Xion wrung her hands. "Um..."

"Well, what would be step one if you were the first person on this register in a while?"

"Um, I guess make sure everything's where it should be?"

"Bingo! See, you're already getting it! Oh, heads up, here comes a customer."

Xion looked up like a deer in headlights, but it was only Axel, sauntering toward them with a broad grin on his face.

"What's this? Someone graduating early?" His tone was teasing, but his smile was kind as he nodded to Xion and set his basket of groceries on the conveyor belt.

"I just thought she should get some hands-on practice before we throw her to the wolves," Roxas explained, opening a bag in preparation. "Don't worry, Xion, you can take your time with this one."

"Oh, sure, it's not like I have anywhere to be!" Axel rolled his eyes. When Xion struggled to find the button to turn on the belt, he pointed helpfully. Xion mumbled her thanks and began scanning, much slower than her brother usually did.

The brother in question already had his bags ready. "Oh, do you? I could've sworn you lived here."

"Rude. For your information, I've only sold half my existence to capitalist wage slavery. The other half belongs to Nintendo, and I've got a hot date with the Hero of Time tonight."

"A hot date involving cheerios and a six-pack. Wow." The scanner beeped loudly. "Xion, you know what to do here, right?"

Xion smiled nervously. "May I see your ID, sir?"

"Come on, guys."

"Yeah, you don't have to. He totally looks over forty."

"Abused in my own workplace yet again," Axel said dramatically, passing Xion the required card. "Roxas, you'll rub off on her."

"Sorry," Xion mumbled, trying to find the birthday. IDs from different states were a thing she still had to get used to. She could only pray that no one gave her a fake; she doubted she would know the difference. "I just want to make sure I do this right..."

"Nah, it's cool." Axel had his credit card out, but waited patiently for her to ask before he swiped it. "It's smart to get into the habit now. No one wants to be slacking off on that shit when Saix goes on the prowl."

"He... doesn't really do that, does he?" The scarred man who had interviewed Xion was one of the most intimidating people she had ever met. She doubted she would be able to get any work done if he was up here, breathing down her neck, looking for any mistakes. This was Xion's first job ever; she knew she would make mistakes. She was always making mistakes.

"He does," Roxas sighed. "Don't worry, though. He can't actually fire anyone unless Xemnas lets him. Apparently he's tried."

"That he has." Axel nodded sagely. "But only the once, and I don't think he was all that serious. You'll do fine, kiddo." He gave her a winning smile as he accepted his receipt. "See, you already finished with your first satisfied customer. You got this."

"Thanks," she said, giving him a tiny smile in return.

"Are you working tomorrow?" Roxas asked as he handed over the grocery bags.

"Yeah, bright and early again. Life is cruel like that." Axel sighed as he gathered his things. "I'll see you around. You crazy kids have fun," he called over his shoulder as he left.

Roxas waited until their coworker was out the door before beaming at Xion. "Isn't he nice?"

"Yeah." Xion watched her brother for a moment, then added slyly, "Now I get why you're so thirsty."

"Hey!" Roxas said indignantly, his cheeks turning slightly pink. "What gave you that impression?"

"Well, there's the way you're acting now." Xion grinned at him. "And you've been vague-blogging about some work crush since you started here. I figured it'd be the nice one." She shrugged, then added, "You were right-- he does have nice eyes."

"People aren't supposed to actually read that stuff." Roxas fussed with the bags, not meeting her eyes. "Besides, it's not like I've got a chance anyway. He's a little... you know. Out of my league."

"But you're great," Xion insisted, surprised. Wasn't Roxas always the one telling her to have a little more confidence? "How do you know if you don't even ask?"

"I can't just go up and _ask_ him," Roxas grumbled. "Even if I thought it could happen. We work together, and technically customer service outranks us, it'd be weird."

"What'd be weird?"

The new voice made them both jump. Xion whirled around, red-faced, to find Larxene leaning against the conveyor belt, watching them. Xion had only met the older woman briefly, but she had gotten the impression that this was another coworker who should not, under any circumstances, be crossed.

"So, what's up? Are we gossiping about colleagues now? Is there some forbidden office romance that I should know about?"

"This is a private conversation," Roxas told her, while Xion stood frozen to the spot, mortified.

"Then you shouldn't be having it at work. Especially if you don't want to poison the runt's training with bad behavior." Larxene smirked at them both. "I wonder, should I mention your slacking off to the boss?"

Roxas let out an aggravated sigh. "Larxene, what do you want?"

"Only a break from this horrible boredom," she said airily, gesturing around at the empty store. "Come on, Roxy, spill the beans. There's nothing else to do around here, so let's chat." When Roxas said nothing, she turned those thinly arched eyebrows on Xion, who quailed. "What about you, then? Care to share with the class?"

"You wouldn't really get Saix, would you?" she blurted out. She wished she could fidget with the bags or something. Why had she let herself be put on the register? Why couldn't she just say no?

"Maybe I would," Larxene teased. "You got something to hide from grumpy old X-face?"

"N-no," Xion stammered.

"Then what's this about someone in customer service? You got something to say to me?" Her eyes glittered. "Spit it out, sweetheart."

"Oh, knock it off. Not everything revolves around you," Roxas spat. "For your information, we were talking about Axel. Nothing to do with you."

"Oh _ho,_ so that's how it is!" Larxene grinned wickedly, which was somehow scarier. How much had she actually heard? "So what about him? Does our newbie have a taste for ginger porcupine? Or maybe _you_ do, Roxy-poo? Ooh, that's it, isn't it?"

"That's none of your business!" Roxas sputtered, going completely red.

"Hey, the peen wants what it wants. I have an interest in the other customer service cutie, myself." She sighed wistfully. "What is it about that place that attracts all the pretty ones? Myself included, of course." She smoothed her black apron.

"Maybe you should go back there," Roxas said hotly. "You know, in case a customer needs servicing."

"What customer?" She gestured at the station, which was still empty. "And it's so much more fun to talk about boys with you! How about you, munchkin? Found anyone to lust after yet?"

"I haven't been here that long," Xion mumbled.

"Don't encourage her," Roxas snapped, making Xion wince. "Larxene, you got what you wanted. Now go away or I'll call Saix up here, I swear I will."

"Please don't," Xion wanted to squeak, but it was too late.

"Why is the customer service desk empty?" As if summoned, the man was there, looking murderous. Xion tugged at Roxas to switch places, but he would not budge, too busy glaring daggers at Larxene.

"Ugh, I'm coming." Larxene went back to her station, though not before shooting Roxas a look that promised this conversation was not over. "Chill out, it's not like there's anything for me to do."

"Oh, really? No returns to be processed? Nothing to restock? What's this here, shelves that need fronting? Did they magically get out of order while you were making chit-chat with our trainee? Or did you expect someone else to take care of it while you idled away company time?"

"My deepest apologies," Larxene simpered, going to the shelves. "I'll make these cereals look nice and pretty for you, sir."

"See that you do. And as for _you,_ " Saix went on, rounding on Roxas and Xion. "I expect much better of you, especially on the trainee's first week. And why is your register light off? Are you too busy socializing to accept customers?"

"My mistake," Roxas told him stiffly. Finally he stepped back into place behind the register, leaving Xion to slink back to the bagging station, wishing she could curl into a ball and disappear while Saix finished chewing them out.

Eventually he stalked off, probably to go yell at the store's other employees. The deli got a few sharp questions, but apparently neither the gigantic man behind that counter nor the blond one restocking the vegetables had done anything to draw Saix's ire. By the time he vanished into the back room, a few customers had trickled in, and Roxas mercifully handled them while Xion bagged items without a word and valiantly tried not to start sniffling.

"I'm sorry," she told Roxas, once they got another moment of quiet. "I didn't mean to get you in trouble."

"But you didn't do anything," he said in mild surprise. "Larxene was the one who wanted to start shit."

"I was supposed to check that everything was okay, and the light was off..."

"Oh, that. Also not your fault." He sighed, checking the clock. "Hey, do you want to go on break? It's about time--"

Xion shook her head emphatically. "I don't wanna go back there."

"You'll have to get used to him at some point." He gave her a small, sympathetic smile. "Look, I know this job is stupid, and half our coworkers are raging douchenuggets, but it's not a life sentence. It's just a place to start. And hey... if you ever have serious trouble, you know I'm right here. And maybe Axel is, too."

Xion bit her lip and nodded. At least she had her big brother. "Sorry about that, too."

"Eh, it's fine." He turned away as a customer approached, this one with a full cart. "Besides," he added, "I doubt anything'll come out of it."

Xion said nothing to that as he greeted his customer and got to work, but she had a feeling he was wrong, if the looks Larxene kept giving them were anything to go by.

Xion shook herself mentally, and tried to focus on her work. She hated drama, and she especially hated feeling like she was causing anyone trouble. She just wanted to get through the summer in peace, and maybe make a little money so she could spend her last year of high school in relative comfort. Well, as comfortable as she could be with the specter of college looming ahead.

She pushed those thoughts away. Roxas was right; she wasn't alone anymore. Her big brother would take care of her. She just had to keep her head down, and do her job right, and everything would be fine.

She would get used to this. Eventually.

* * *

 

Aqua waited patiently by the circulation desk at the University Avenue branch of the Radiant Garden Public Library, resume in hand. The place was even bigger than she remembered, a maze of colorful shelves and big round desks. The outer walls were entirely glass and formed a huge dome overhead, turning the whole place into a giant's snow globe. Near the desk there was a spiral staircase that led to the reference section, the study room, a video section, and the children's room and cafe at the very top. All were open to the sky.

"Aqua Wayfinder?"

She stood. A pretty brunette returned her smile as she came out from behind the circulation desk.

"Professor Ansem will see you now. Right this way, please."

A professor! Surely that meant Aqua had a good chance, right? She knew the public library had a partnership with the city's university, but a professor would not just pop in to interview someone who was not being seriously considered. Aqua held her resume tightly, daring to hope.

Her guide took her past the staircase, down a row of low shelves displaying new arrivals, and into a back area where the conference rooms were located. At door number one, the brunette knocked.

"Come in."

The professor had a deep voice, high cheekbones, and such an air of nobility about him that Aqua felt she should bow. Instead she merely inclined her head as the brunette introduced her.

"Ah, yes. The interview candidate. Welcome, welcome." Ansem moved his notebook aside-- as if this were merely an interruption, and not something he had come to this conference room specifically to conduct-- and folded his hands, turning to face the two women. "Thank you, Belle, you can leave us."

"Professor," Belle said respectfully. She shut the door behind herself, leaving Aqua alone in the stuffy room.

"Miss Wayfinder, is it? Please have a seat." Ansem accepted her resume, but barely gave it a passing glance. "Why would you like to work here?"

Aqua sat up straight, mirroring his poise. "Well, sir, I grew up in this city, and I've always loved books. When I first decided to go into library studies, this was the place I had in mind." She smiled. "So I guess you could say it's my dream job."

"I am flattered to hear it," Ansem said warmly. That seemed to do the trick: now he picked up her resume again, this time looking at it with genuine interest. "I see here that you were certified at Traverse Community College. But no other degrees?"

 _Do I need one?_ she might have asked, but instead she said politely, "No, sir."

"Surprising, given that you went to the city's own Departure Academy. Have they discontinued their college prepatory programs?"

"Not at all. I loved it there. But after high school I had to take some time off to deal with... family matters." It was an explanation she had memorized by now. The brief pause usually let people draw their own conclusions. "We moved to Traverse, and I went to school part-time so I could keep up an academic lifestyle. I suppose I just fell in love with the work, and a few years later, here I am."

"Here you are, indeed." Ansem smiled. "Well, Miss Wayfinder, you should know that for our main branch, we usually look for people with specialized knowledge, and at least five years of experience at a similarly prestigious institution. I'm afraid the former children's library in Traverse Town's fourth district does not meet that criteria," he added kindly.

Aqua bowed her head, biting her tongue and willing herself not to tear up. She had really, really wanted this one. Worse, she had let herself get way too hopeful, way too early. _Stupid!_

"However," Ansem went on, "one of our smaller branches is currently under renovation. Would you be willing to commute?"

Aqua's head shot up. "Absolutely," she answered, hardly daring to believe it.

"Very good. The young woman you encountered earlier would be working with you, and she was very impressed with your application." Ansem scribbled a note on the bottom of her resume. "To be honest, this is little more than a formality, as she will be your direct supervisor there. But I must say I approve her decision. Perhaps after some time, we can meet again and see about a transfer." He beamed at her. "Congratulations, my dear."

"Thank you," Aqua said breathlessly. "Thank you so much!"

"You should receive a call within two weeks to begin your orientation. It's been a pleasure." He offered his hand.

Aqua shook it and thanked him again. She was smiling so hard that her cheeks hurt. She had a brief discussion with Belle before she left-- during which Aqua must have thanked her far more than was necessary-- then nearly floated down the steps of the grand building. She would be working in some outer borough, not the lovely place she was just in, but who could care? She would gladly suffer an hour-long commute if it meant another library job.

She would have to tell her family, but she wanted to do that in person. She could not wait until dinner to celebrate, though. And now that she no longer needed to spend the remainder of the day finding and filling out applications, she had hours to herself.

Her spirits still soaring, she searched for some place to go. A cafe, maybe? The very library she was just in? The movies? No, those all meant sitting still, and she felt too much like dancing for joy.

She settled for the park. She chose the very biggest in the city, only a ten-minute walk from the university, and strolled down the semi-famous fountain pathway, a very wide paved area framed by lamp posts, benches and novelty booths at regular intervals. Miniature fountains surrounded the whole thing.

The summer festivities would get into full swing later in the day, but some merchants and performers were getting an early start. Aqua stopped to watch a French man's puppet show and dropped a few coins in his hat; she did the same for a pretty redhead who sang beautiful karaoke. She bought herself a snow cone, two churros, and an adorable set of handmade clay earrings that looked like little books.

In the prime spots near the famous fountain, where small groups of tourists already gathered for pictures, artists had set up camp. There were a couple who did caricatures, another who sold jewelry, and even a henna booth. Even more entertaining than the attractions were the people: the henna artist with bubblegum-pink hair and plum lipstick, who gave Aqua a flirtatious wink when she admired his work; a boisterous British man twirling a thin mustache as he argued directions with a spirited young lady; a Middle Eastern boy holding half a loaf of bread and arguing with a monkey, trying to make it do tricks.

Aqua walked away from the fountain plaza, down one of the paved walkways without any particular direction in mind. She still had a few hours to kill.

Eventually she found herself at an outdoor cafe in the middle of the park, sipping a virgin daiquiri and resting her tired feet. She had not done nearly so much walking back in Traverse Town, and she was surprised to find how much she missed it. This really was the greatest city in the world.

As she admired the greenery, the people, and even the clouds on this beautiful day, she began to feel eyes on her. Frowning, she glanced around. It took her a moment, and a double-take, before she recognized the person at the next table over. When she did her mood immediately soured.

"You!" she burst out, appalled.

"Me," answered Vanitas, smirking at her as he settled his sunglasses on spiky black hair. Gold eyes sparkled with wicked humor. "I was wondering when you'd drop the innocent act."

"What are you doing here?" she demanded. "Have you been following me?"

His laugh sent a shiver down her spine. "Lady, I've been here since eight this morning. It's you who took the new shady spot with your pussy drink. Now my beer's warm and the glare off my book hurts my eyes. If anyone's got a right to act all offended, it's certainly not you."

She glared at him. At least it did seem that he was telling the truth; he was almost finished with what looked like his third drink, and the shade from a big umbrella between their tables was slowly migrating away from a thick volume in front of him. But those were likely just props; she had never known Vanitas to be any sort of intellectual, and anyway what on earth would _his_ type be doing at a nice place like this?

Aqua looked down at her drink. She had expected to stay and gotten it in a glass. She would hate to walk away from something so delicious, but she was not about to let this wonderful day be ruined by the likes of Vanitas. She started to stand.

"Oh, don't bother," he sighed, rolling his eyes. "I'll just go. This place smells like stale beer and dog shit now, anyway. Someone must have tracked it here." He stuffed the remainder of his beer in a paper bag and laughed again when Aqua contorted in her chair, checking her shoes in alarm.

"You're disgusting."

"And you're gullible," he said cheerfully. "See you around, toots."

Briefly she considered throwing her drink on him as he closed his book and stood. But no; she would not lower herself to his level by making things difficult for the cafe workers. Instead she watched him coldly as he gathered up his two empty beer cans, crushed them, dumped them in the recycling bin and strode off down the park path. She made sure to watch him until he left her sight, and kept one eye open until she finished her drink and made her own way out, purposefully going in a different direction.

As she strode off, drinking in the sights and sounds of the park once again, her good mood gradually returned. After all, she had just gotten a job-- and at the public library! She thought, as she walked, about what she would tell her family, especially her father, who had wanted more than anything for them all to work for the city. Radiant Garden University offered significant aid to city employees, and in a few years, she might be able to get her undergraduate degree after all. She might even be able to transfer to one of the schools she had originally applied to, all those years ago.

That was her real dream: getting her life back under control. Someday, maybe someday soon, she could start looking for her own place in the world. She would finally finish her education, get a real job, someday move out (though she told herself she wouldn't go far), and she would have a place and a life that was all her own.

Today she had taken one more big step towards her goal. Some goon like Vanitas had nothing on that.

Smiling again, she pulled out her phone and sent out a group text to her family. _We should go out for dinner tonight,_ it said. _I have amazing news._

* * *

 

"C'mon, Xion, we'll miss our train!" Roxas bounced on the balls of his feet while Xion struggled to swipe her subway card, bumping her hips repeatedly against the turnstile. Roxas felt a little bad for being so impatient with her, but he was already sticky. Radiant Garden's subway system, nicknamed the Dark Corridors by locals, was both the best and the worst way to get around the city. They were fast, and reliable enough on weekdays, and in rain or snow the stations were a blessed refuge from the elements. Roxas was quickly learning, however, that they were absolutely unbearable in the summer.

Xion got herself through, and the two of them scrambled down two flights of gum-spotted concrete stairs to their platform, where a train was just closing its doors.

"No, no, no! Come on!" Roxas shouted. He raced across the platform and smacked his hand against them, looking left and right for a conductor. A woman gave him a sympathetic wince through the window as the train creaked forward, then accelerated so that the resulting breeze nearly blew him back a step.

"Fuck," Roxas wheezed, slumping back into one of the scuzzy wooden benches in the middle of the platform. At this hour they would have to wait at least fifteen minutes for the next train, and now that the last one was gone the atmosphere had stilled once more, making his shirt stick to his chest and his throat ache every time he inhaled the muggy, faintly urine-scented air.

Xion sat down next to him, on the very edge of the bench. It took a couple minutes of silence before Roxas looked over at her and realized she was tearing up.

"Hey..."

"I'm sorry," Xion whispered, swallowing hard. "I know I'm... I'm not so good at this..."

Roxas sighed in aggrivation. "I'm not mad at you," he assured her. "I'm mad at the situation. Honestly, we probably wouldn't have made it anyway." He doubted that was the case, but it was troublingly easy to make Xion feel bad, and he hated to see his baby sister so upset.

Xion sniffed and nodded. "I just feel like I'm always messing things up. And I've been here so long, I should be better at this now..."

"Well, you're not, and there's nothing wrong with that," he insisted. "You've only been here a year and never had to commute. Trust me, you're doing fine." That part was true; there was a much smaller subway and tram system in Twilight Town, where Roxas had lived from gradeschool until college, and only aboveground transit in San Fransokyo, where Xion had spent her adolescence. And she rarely got out, so he supposed it should not be surprising she had trouble getting around.

Roxas tried to fan himself with his shirt collar. It only made him sweat more.

Xion did not agree with him, but she did not voice any more objections, either, and Roxas was too tired to give her a pep talk now. Their shifts today had been exceptionally long, and the bottoms of his feet felt like solid bruises by the end.

After what seemed like an impossibly long wait, during which Roxas's backpack pressed his shirt thoroughly into his sweaty back and armpits, and his face had dripped so much that the salt stung his eyes, a local train arrived. Roxas and Xion trudged on and squeezed in, the blessed relief of subway air conditioning dampened somewhat by the body heat of a hundred strangers.

Conversation was impossible as the train lurched from one station to the next, screeching every time, pumping humans from one part of the great city to another like a massive artery system. As the train descended, tunneling underneath one of the large canals that cut the city into pieces, the lights in their car flickered.

Every now and then, some part of Radiant Garden would remind Roxas of his early childhood, and now was one of those times. Faintly he could recall sitting in one of these train cars, many years ago, with baby Xion on their birth mother's lap and the boys all clinging to each other. There had been a mechanical problem with the train, and the whole thing had been stuck right under the water for about twenty minutes, with the lights flickering on and off. The baby had started to cry, but the older boys had made a game out of it, playing I Spy in the semi-darkness while their mother fussed and fretted over getting home late. Roxas had clung to his twin and kept quiet, but secretly he had wanted to stay in that train forever, just the five of them and their mom.

He smiled at the memory and nudged Xion. "Remember this?" he asked her. But she only looked confused. He supposed she would have been far too young, after all.

After eighteen total stops they disembarked, in a small neighborhood called the Bailey. Xion led the way down a street of quaint little brownstone houses, and together they trudged up the steps of the one where she had lived with their grandfather and his wife for the past few months.

Grandma Nobuko was already in bed, but Grampa Hiroyuki was in the kitchen, reading a large newspaper while a mug of tea steamed beside him. He regarded them silently as they removed their shoes, though he did respond when Xion asked him something in Japanese.

Dinner was a quiet, awkward affair. Xion kept her head down as she shoveled her microwave-cooked mac and cheese into her mouth, and their grandfather in the connecting room said not a word. Evidently this was how they did things; each family member kept to themselves except when absolutely necessary.

As they tiptoed up the stairs, Roxas wondered if the taciturn old couple had anything to do with Xion's sensitivity. She had insisted that they were perfectly fine, and only seemed cold because Roxas did not know them well, but he still found their behavior deeply strange. He could not shake the feeling that they held something against him, particularly when he knew that Grampa, at least, knew much more English than he let on.

He gave Xion a quick hug goodnight, and continued on up to the attic, where he occupied a tiny guest room. It was even smaller than his dorm room, a glorified closet with only a mattress, sleeping bag, and cheap plastic dresser. He mostly lived out of his suitcase, while his various belongings that were usually spread out in his dorm had been shoved into boxes and piled on top of the dresser. He even had a few bags crammed under Xion's bed downstairs.

It was too warm tonight to burrow in his sheets, though he desperately wanted to. Instead he settled for taking out his phone, which had no fewer than seven texts from his adoptive mother back in Twilight Town, three from Axel, and two from his brother Sora.

His mother, as usual, had asked about his day, whether he needed anything, how Xion was doing. She did mention her stupid boyfriend that Roxas hated, but he was so desperate for some non-awkward family interaction tonight that he let it go unmentioned. Axel's texts made him giggle-- apparently he had worn cheap eyeliner today, and sweating in a bar somewhere made it run down his cheeks. Roxas would be laughing at those pictures for days.

The two messages from Sora were mostly emojis. Roxas ignored those.

He sighed and lay back in bed. It was impossible to get comfortable here-- both physically and in a more general sense. He would have to find something more to do over the summer, because he simply could not spend all his time between here and work. The awkward silence was just too weird. And it made him worry about Xion; he might only be in this house until school began again, and he could return to the dorms, but she was here all the time. It could not be healthy for her.

Roxas thought for a moment, then took his phone out again, opening up his conversation with Axel. After several minutes of typing, deleting, retyping, and general fussing, he asked, _wanna do smthg this week?_

Within a minute or so he got a response: _lol sure lyk wat_

Roxas bit his lip. He had not expected such a fast reply. _i dunno,_ he typed. _maybe show me + my sis some of the city? i feel like ive barely seen it b/c im always at school or work_

_lol ok_

There was barely a pause between texts.

_cud show u outer gardens? ?? or skate parks. fountain park mayb. its p nice in summer but tourists invade. idk the best places i kno r 21+_

Roxas frowned. He had noticed an unfortunate vigilance among the various liquor vendors around Radiant Garden. Or maybe Roxas's friends were right and he really did have a baby face.

 _maybe i should get a fake then,_ he typed, but he chose not to send it. They were all aware that Xion was still underage, of course, but Roxas was not sure if Axel knew he was only nineteen. How old was Axel, anyway? He had graduated from Radiant Garden U, but he had never mentioned when. Maybe he was too old for Roxas. He was probably too old.

Roxas shook his head. He was being stupid. Even if age wasn't a factor, Axel was way out of his league. Still, it didn't hurt to find Xion a friend, and maybe one for himself too, since all his school buddies were away for the summer. And as much as he loved his sister, he thought he might scream if he had only her and her nerves for company.

So, feeling giddy, he said, _fountain park sounds awsm. lets do that next time we all have off. and maybe u can show me the skate park when its just u and me?_

 _lol sounds lyk a plan,_ came the speedy reply. _chek work sched tmrw?_

 _yeah sounds good,_ Roxas sent out, grinning despite himself. _gnight!_

_lol nite_

He hugged his phone, glad no one was around to see him act this way. He had already been too obvious about it in front of Xion, and now Larxene. The thought made him nervous; the older woman usually left him alone, but there was something about her scathing sense of humor that made him very uncomfortable to know she had something on him. He could only hope he was not entertaining enough for her to bother him about it.

He set his alarm and plugged in his phone for the night, exchanging it for his computer. He knew he shouldn't nurse this crush, but there was no harm in making friends, right? He was just looking out for Xion. No need to be paranoid.

Trying to push that thought from his mind, he settled into bed with his laptop for a long, lazy night.

* * *

 

Terra should have known, as soon as Smee and the others saw his face and started laughing, that he was not going to have a good end to the night. He should have known once he looked at the order for "Princess L" and saw "sendn thr cutie plz <#33 ;)))" in the delivery instructions. But his abominable coworkers had smirked, and made more gross implications, and given him the rest of the night off, so he had foolishly allowed himself to hope that things would go as smoothly as last time. Which, other than Terra acting like a complete dolt, had not been so bad.

But this time, when he buzzed the door to 5D, there was no answer. He tried again. And again.

Hoping for the best, he dialed the customer's number, trying not to bite his lip as he listened to it ring once, twice, three times--

" _\--lo?_ " There was a low roaring noise in the background, as if the speaker were somewhere loud.

Terra winced and held the phone a couple inches away from his ear. "Um, hi. This is Pirate Pizza, I don't think your buzzer's working..."

For a moment he heard only the roaring. Was that music in the distance? " _What?_ "

"Pizza!" Terra raised his voice. "Your pizza's here, I need you to buzz me in!"

" _What? Ugh, hang on... get out of my way... here, you take him... I said MOVE!_ " The roaring subsided, replaced by a dull, distant beat. " _My apologies. Who is this?_ "

Crap. It was Isa. "Uh, it's the delivery guy from Pirate Pizza. I have an extra-large Treasure Trove with no peppers and double chicken for... the princess?"

Isa was silent for a moment. " _You mean to tell me that he ordered a pizza._ "

"Um, yes?"

Terra might have thought the phone cut out, but for that faint music in the background. Then Isa said lowly, " _I am going to kill him._ "

"What?"

" _Nevermind. Just--_ " A frustrated huff sounded like loud crackling over the phone. " _Okay. We're on our way. You can leave it by the front door, if you want. Did he at least pay by card?_ "

"No, it's cash again." Terra bit his lip. "Um, I can wait a while, I already clocked out and gave them the money, so I kind of need to meet up with you guys or go back with the food..."

Isa sounded like he was growling. " _I am going to_ kill _him._ "

"Hey, if it's too much trouble, I can just--"

" _No. Stay there. We're leaving now._ " The roaring increased in volume again. Terra had to struggle to hear the rest. " _Once again I apologize on this moron's behalf. He'll tip well, I assure you._ "

He hung up without so much as a goodbye. Terra stared at his phone for a moment, unable to get over the idea that anyone would order food delivered when they weren't home. Then, sighing heavily, he set the pizza box down and leaned against the brick wall by the buzzer, resigning himself to a long and uncomfortable night.

He was still in this position thirty-six minutes later, idly playing with his phone, when a taxi pulled up to the curb directly in front of him. He grabbed the pizza box and straightened up, leaving Flappy Bird to its grisly fate as he watched the taxi door open.

A skinny redheaded man spilled out first, stumbling onto hands and knees on the sidewalk and groaning. Terra could hear Isa inside, probably paying the cab driver. The very ill-looking man before him must be the mysterious roommate, then.

Terra took a cautious step forward. "Are you okay?"

The man shook his head and groaned again, the very picture of a fun night out gone wrong. "'M fucked up, sooo fucked up..."

"You're fine, you absurd drama queen." Isa exited the cab and slammed the door, looking livid. "Now get up and pay for your damn food."

"I can't," the redhead whined, his head so low it nearly scraped the pavement. "You gotta help me, you _gotta_..."

"Oh, for the love of god." Isa bent over, siezed his friend around the middle, and heaved him up, much to the redhead's protests. "Stop complaining, you have no one to thank for this mess but yourself!"

"Isaaa, you're so meeean..."

Despite his supposed meanness, Isa allowed his friend to wrap long arms around his neck and hang off of him like a dead weight as he struggled to dig his wallet and keys out of his jacket.

"Hey, do you guys need some help?" Terra automatically held out a hand when the friend looked like he might fall.

Isa simply shook his head and resettled the man's weight on his hip, but the roommate rolled his head on Isa's shoulder so he could turn his bleary green eyes toward Terra. "I think 'm dying," he slurred.

Isa rolled his eyes in disgust. "You're not dying, Lea, stop worrying the poor man." Isa finally managed to yank out his keys, making his wallet fall onto the ground as he struggled mightily not to let the same thing happen to his friend. He cursed.

Terra knelt to help. "Is he going to be okay?"

"Yes, this happens with appalling regularity." Isa glared at his companion as he accepted the wallet. "Thank you-- what was your name again?"

"Terra."

"Terra. Thank you again for putting up with this idiot." He shook his friend. "Lea, tell Terra you're sorry for being an ass. _Again._ "

Lea only groaned and burrowed his face further into Isa's shoulder. "But 'm _dyin'_..."

"You're suffering the inevitable result of everything you've ingested over the past two hours," Isa retorted. "Terra... would you mind...?" He gestured at the door with his keys.

Terra jumped to help.

Once inside the building, Isa still had not been able to get at his wallet, and his roommate did not look any more able to walk. The man seemed to come to the same conclusion Terra did, glancing between the stairs, the large pizza, and his drunk friend. Isa's jaw clenched.

"I'll trade you," Terra offered, holding out the pizza box. "I mean, if you don't mind getting the door."

"We're on the fifth floor," Isa reminded him.

"It's okay, I'm strong." Terra rolled up his sleeves.

Isa stared at him for a moment longer, but Lea whined again that he didn't feel well, and that seemed to do the trick.

"If he starts retching, drop him and get away," Isa advised, accepting the pizza bag so Terra's hands were free. "Hopefully we can get to safety before that happens."

"I c'n hold it, I'm a big boy," Lea insisted, as Terra slid one arm around his shoulders and another under his legs, lifting him with relative ease. He was a little heavier than expected, but nothing Terra could not handle.

Isa and Lea both stared at him as he adjusted his grip. "Lead the way," he told Isa.

"You _are_ strong," Lea said in wonder as they began the long climb up. He had an arm around Terra's neck for support. "And you're _cute_... Isa, Isa lookit this, I'm being carried..."

"Yes, the princess is going up to her tower," Isa said drily. "Don't make this more awkward than it already is."

Again Terra wondered whether this were all some sort of elaborate prank. But no; Isa's annoyance seemed genuine. It was just Terra's own terrible luck.

Lea stared up into his face while Terra did his best not to react. The redhead sported two diamond tattoos on his cheekbones, which drew attention to the shape of his face and his bright green eyes. Lea was just as attractive as his roommate, or would be if not for the drunken slurring and rancid breath. He rested his head on Terra's shoulder and sighed dreamily, prompting Isa to turn and glare reproachfully at him as they rounded the first stair landing.

Terra's legs did start to hurt a bit as they got to the second floor, but of greater concern was the fact that Lea seemed in danger of falling asleep. Rather than endure that additional awkwardness, Terra spoke up. "So, I've been curious..."

"Yup, we're both single," Lea slurred, grinning and hugging him.

"No, I do not know why I'm friends with him," Isa shot back.

"Um, no." Terra tried valiantly to keep his voice even, to ignore the heat in his face and ears, and the mild surge of panic in his chest. "I just wanted to know, where did the princess thing come from?"

"Oh, that." Isa rolled his eyes. "His name is spelled L-e-a."

"An' Isa's a nerrrrd," Lea giggled.

Terra smiled despite himself. "It's a Star Wars reference?"

"And a very flattering one. Meanwhile he nicknamed me after the Twilight girl." Isa adjusted the pizza box and rounded another landing. By the sound of it, his legs were feeling the strain too.

"Hey, I did a flatterin' thing too, y'know. Isabella means beautiful. I think." Lea leaned in conspiratorially, nearly throwing Terra off balance. "D'ya think I was bein' overgenerous?" he whispered, not at all quiet.

" _Lea,_ " Isa warned.

"M'just askin' if he thinks you're pretty!" Overbright green eyes focused on Terra. He really was way too close. "Well?"

"Obviously he thinks you're being incredibly inappropriate. Terra, please feel free to throw him down the stairs if he takes this any further."

Lea stuck his tongue out, leaning over a little to do so. Telling himself it was more out of necessity than malice, Terra paused to readjust his grip, lifting his burden up a little higher as he did so, putting enough strength into the movement to toss Lea a few inches into the air.

Lea groaned at that and tucked his head into Terra's shoulder. "Nnngh, you're mean too..."

Isa glanced over his shoulder, a tiny smirk on his lips. He approved.

Lea was mercifully quiet as they climbed the last flight of stairs. By the time they reached the top, even Terra was a little winded. "Should I set you down here?" he asked, as Isa got the door.

Lea's hand was covering his mouth. By way of response, he only shook his head, and barely suppressed a gag.

"Um, Isa, I think we've got a situation here," Terra said, trying to keep the alarm out of his voice.

"Bring him in." Isa shoved the door open and beckoned Terra inside.

Their apartment was even smaller than it had appeared from the brief glimpse Terra had gotten last time. Isa could only open the door about halfway before it hit a counter, and he directed Terra to step in sideways so he did not knock Lea's head against the door. With a businesslike efficiency, Isa dropped the pizza box on a couch, maneuvered Lea to his feet and dragged him down a short hall to the bathroom. For once Lea did not argue, but stumbled along after, and from the awful retching and splashing sounds within, they made it just in time.

Terra took a moment to catch his breath and look around. The place was terribly small, made even smaller by the clutter of two people when it was clearly meant for one. The kitchen was really just a tiny section of the living room, separated by a portable island that was covered in water bottles, alcohol, and takeout containers. There was a small fridge, a stove with a dishrack on it, and a sink that was overflowing with cups and plates. The living room had only the barest section of floor to pass between a lumpy Ikea couch, an overstuffed bookshelf, and a television with so many consoles attached that they had to be stored in crates under a lone window that looked out into a solid brick wall.

Terra gingerly stepped around the couch. The tiny hallway on the other side was barely wide enough for one person, and at its opposite end a door had been left open to reveal a bedroom that was just as cramped the main area.

The bathroom, at least, was pristine and a little more spacious. Lea was kneeling before the porcelain throne, emptying his stomach, while Isa rubbed his back and lectured him on the foolishness of combining tequila, beer and weed.

"Is... is he going to be okay?" Terra asked for the second time that night.

Lea tried to shake his head, only to be overcome with another round of vomiting.

"He'll be fine once he gets it out of his system," Isa said, in a tone that Terra thought was shockingly unconcerned. "Then he'll swear he's learned his lesson, but we'll end up in this same position again within a few weeks, mark my words."

Terra eyed them dubiously. Lea seemed unable to hold himself up. "Is there anything I can do? Maybe he needs water?"

Isa did not look up, busy making sure Lea did not fall over. "There should be a clean cup by the sink over there."

There was; it had cartoon characters on it. Terra rinsed it out anyway before filling it and handing it over, then awaited further instruction.

"You know, I'm shocked that we haven't frightened you off yet," Isa told him. For all his decorum, he seemed quite unbothered by the spectacular mess that his friend was making right in front of him. "I suppose the pizza needs to be put away-- plastic wrap is in the cabinet under the sink, if you feel like doing that."

"Yeah, of course." Terra hurried out of the bathroom, eager to keep busy. He was not particularly queasy, but even he had his limits, and a stranger's vomit was one of them.

The pizza, of course, was barely lukewarm now, despite the insulating bag. By the time Terra washed his hands (he had to rearrange the dishes in the sink to make room) and packaged the whole thing up, Lea had apparently finished, and Isa was coaxing him into the bedroom.

"Such a drama queen," Isa muttered as he came into the kitchen for a water bottle, a small tupperware box, and Advil. "And I'm sure my phone will be blowing up with apologies and complaints when I'm at work tomorrow morning. The things I have to put up with..."

Terra might have pointed out that Isa did not strictly "have" to do any of this, but it seemed better not to interrupt.

Soon Isa returned, leaving the bedroom door open a crack the way Terra's father had when he was little. "The princess is safely abed," Isa announced drily. "Now how much do we owe you?"

Terra had nearly forgotten about that, though it was ostensibly the only reason he was still here. He checked the order form. "Twenty-one dollars," he said. "Well, twenty and ninety-three cents."

"Which is more than I have. Brilliant." Isa sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Okay. I have to go digging for the idiot's money. He's not allowed to have cash on him when he goes out," he explained. "At least, not when he goes out with the coworkers who encourage this sort of behavior. Not after the last time." Isa began rooting through a jacket that had been left on the arm of the couch. "Feel free to make yourself comfortable. Water filter's in the fridge. Have some pizza, if you want."

"I'm okay with water," Terra said, helping himself to a cup from the dishrack on the stove. "I'm not much of a pizza man, to be honest. I know that's a little weird."

"Well, we work in customer service, and everyone hates customers." Isa finished with the jacket, found nothing, and checked under the pillows on that side of the couch. "It's a harsh world we live in."

Terra smiled over his water. "My customers aren't so bad."

He was rewarded with a rueful smirk. "If you say so. Here we are..." He found a zippered wallet, opened it and frowned. "Hm. Well, I'll just pay him back tomorrow if he whines. Though he should cover this all himself, if you ask me. Here. No change." He gave Terra a couple of bills, then stashed the wallet away and began straightening up the couch.

Terra frowned at the money in his hand. "Uh, you gave me forty."

"And?"

Terra stared at him. "That's way too much."

"After you waited over half an hour and carried a drunk stranger up four flights of stairs?" Isa shook his head. "I'd give you more if I had it. You were a big help tonight and I like to pay what I owe."

"But..."

"Just take it. I insist." He pushed Terra's hand away. "If you can't accept it for yourself, then do it on behalf of criminally underpaid service workers everywhere. Now, do you still need me to sign that receipt?"

Terra nodded and offered it to him. "Thank you," he said sheepishly. "That's the second time you've been really generous with me."

"It's the second time you've put up with my roommate's exasperating nonsense," Isa said with a shrug. "Actually..." He paused, an unsettling glint in those yellow eyes. "This section on the bottom is the customer's receipt, correct?"

"Yeah, that's yours if you want it."

"Okay. Here's what we'll do." Isa folded the paper along the dotted line and carefully ripped off the bottom. "We work at a grocery store near the university. I'll give you his schedule for the week and you can come in and harass him during work hours. You'll find him at the customer service desk or a cash register; make sure to prepare as many idiotic requests as you can." He scrawled directions on the back of the receipt. "It'll make me feel better, anyway."

"Market... is that Roman numerals?"

"Our boss is rather eccentric."

"Okay. Market Thirteen." Terra tucked the paper with the forty dollars into his own wallet. "Thanks again, by the way. And... good luck with your friend."

Isa held the door open for him. "Good luck with your pizza deliveries, not-a-pizza-man."

"Just Terra is fine."

"Terra, then. I'll see you around."

"See you around, Isa."

Terra left, feeling strangely giddy. As he made his way back down the stairs, taking two at a time, he found himself actually contemplating a visit to the market. He was oddly interested in seeing these people in a different setting, and-- whether it was simply curiosity, or because the extra money in his pocket made him feel obligated-- he wanted to see the blue-haired man again.

By the time he got back on his bike and started for home, he was smiling. Perhaps tonight had not been so bad after all.


	3. Deals and Promises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Axel gets an unexpected visitor; Ven gets a new friend while Roxas gets a new rival; Vanitas finds new reasons to be angry and Eraqus finds new reasons to be concerned. Also, more Disney cameos!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sadly some of the main characters of this fic had barely a mention in this chapter, but there were some things I needed to set up. Some points of view I needed to introduce. There are still a couple of major players who need a proper introduction, but slowly the pieces are falling into place... plots are beginning to take shape... paths are leading toward one another. Soon all the various dorks will be united, and many deeply awkward love stories can commence. (And not all of them are romantic!)
> 
> Are you excited? Because I am excited.
> 
> (Also, in case anyone was wondering-- yes, this city is partly based on NYC! Because I live there and I warned you this fic was hella indulgent. One of the living spaces that appears is heavily based on a place I used to live, loooool)

Axel lazily swept a cleaning rag over his counter for the third time in an hour. He hated days like this: slow days that were expected to be slow, so he was manning the customer service station alone while a single cashier and two stockers took care of the rest of the store. The cashier in question was Roxas, but Axel could not even hang out with him properly, because there were just enough customers to keep one of them attentive.

His hand strayed to the phone in his pocket, but he stopped himself. His best-friend-slash-boss was still angry with him for the other night, when he had apparently gotten plastered and then ordered a pizza from the same guy he had jokingly flirted with that one time. Axel remembered none of it, of course, but his friend was usually justified when he got this annoyed with his drunk self, so he might as well stay on his best behavior for a while.

But it was just so _boring_. He had only had one return all morning. He had half a mind to page Saix and ask for his break early, just so he could avoid the monotony. He was beginning to seriously contemplate it when someone finally approached.

"Hello," he said cheerfully, slapping on his best customer service smile. "How can I help you?"

A rather handsome, well-muscled young man was frowning at a scrap of paper-- perhaps a shopping list-- but he looked up at Axel's voice. "Oh, there you are," he said with apparent relief.

"Here I am," Axel agreed, leaning on the counter and tilting his head in the same flirtatious way he used for selfies. "What can I do for you today, sir?"

"Sir, huh?" Ooh, he was a cute one. He had a slight tan, thick brown hair and long lashes that framed his pretty blue eyes quite nicely, and a charming smile. Maybe today would not be so boring after all.

"I, ah... I was told to come here. To bother you." He ran a hand through his hair, suddenly awkward.

"Well, consider me bothered." Axel grinned. Had he given his work info to some random hot guy at the bar the other night before he blacked out? It sounded like something he might do. "Can I ask who sent you? Some tipsy cutie named Lea, perhaps?"

The man chuckled. "No, the other one. You were pretty out of it." He looked Axel over, then raised an eyebrow. "You don't recognize me at all, do you?"

"I wish I did," Axel lamented. "'Fraid you'll have to jog my memory."

"I called you 'princess' and carried you up four flights of stairs? There was pizza involved," the man recounted, then offered the slip of paper he was carrying.

Sure enough, it was torn off the end of a GrubHub order, made out to Axel's joke name and dated to his most recent night of terrible decisions. On the back was his roommate's distinctive handwriting, with directions to the store and hours during which to "harass him at the customer service desk."

Well, there went the possibility of a hot date. "That really happened?"

The man smiled again.

"Shit. Listen, I'm really sorry. My buddy told me what I put you through." Axel rubbed the back of his neck. "Drunk me is kind of a dick sometimes."

"Oh, you weren't that bad." The pizza man shrugged. At least he didn't seem terribly offended. "I wasn't really going to bother you at work, but I guess I was curious." He shrugged again, now looking a little shy. Axel bit the inside of his cheek, hope blossoming in his heart, but then the man added, "Is, um... is Isa around today?"

"Yeah, but he's stuck in the back." The pizza man's disappointment was obvious, and Axel sighed inwardly. It really had been too much to hope that his drunken self had made such a fine conquest. Ah, well, there were plenty of other fish in the sea, and maybe his friend would forgive him sooner if he helped him get laid. "I can call him up here if you want," Axel said now.

"Oh, no, I don't really want to interrupt his work." The man bit his lip, then took a breath and went on, "I just thought, since he gave me your schedule, maybe I should say hello. And since you seem to like our pizza, maybe I should give you guys my schedule too, so you don't end up with one of the other delivery guys next time. They'd be weird about it." He fidgeted. "I mean, I know I'm being the weird one right now, but..." He trailed off. The tips of his ears had gone slightly pink. "Sorry, I know it's a dumb idea."

"No, it's awesome." Axel had to fight the urge to grin with pride-- apparently his friend had more game than he'd thought-- and settled instead for a lazy smile. "You're right, though, he doesn't like to be interrupted at work. But you can leave your schedule with me and I'll make sure we give you plenty of business. Or, better yet, you could give me your phone number and we can just ask if you're there."

He hoped it wasn't too soon for that one, but the man smiled. "Yeah, that's probably the smarter thing to do."

Success, Axel thought, as he smirked and produced a pen and some receipt paper from behind the customer service desk. While the man stepped to the side and wrote busily, someone else approached the counter.

"Okay, it's been ten minutes since I got someone," Roxas huffed, yanking off his apron. "Axel, can you watch the registers while I go to the bathroom? I feel like I'm gonna--"

"Roxas?" The pizza man was staring down at Axel's young friend. He had jumped a little when Roxas approached. "I didn't know you moved back!"

"Uhh..." Roxas glanced at Axel, who was just as confused. What did he mean by 'moved back?' "Sorry, do I know you?"

"It's... it's me, Terra. Ven's older brother, remember?"

"Oh. Oh!" Roxas gave a startled laugh, smacking his forehead. "Wow! You're... a lot bigger now," he finished, probably noticing Terra's broad shoulders and thick biceps just as Axel had.

_Note to self,_ Axel thought: _ask about that brother._

Meanwhile Terra chuckled. "So are you," he pointed out. "Not by much, though."

"Excuse you!" Roxas bounced on the balls of his feet, pouting a little. "I'll have you know I'm in college now! And-- look, I'm really sorry to cut this short, but my bladder is gonna explode. Axel, can you...?"

"No worries," he chuckled, taking Roxas's apron and setting it behind the counter. Already someone was at the registers, a large brown man who was looking around in distress at the lack of cashiers. Axel called him over, and allowed himself a sigh of despair when the man came with a cart full of items, followed by a wife with her own cart, and two small children who loudly argued over which cereal to get.

Terra pushed the paper with his number across the counter with a smile. "I'll just leave you to it," he said. "Lea, right?"

"Lea at home, Axel at work. I know, I have too many names." He managed to give Terra a last quick wave and tuck the paper away before the family descended on him, and the hellish combination of screaming children and a huge stack of coupons effectively put cute pizza boys and their mystery brothers out of his mind for the rest of the morning.

* * *

 

Ven rolled smoothly down a concrete ramp, his skateboard rumbling under him like a miniature thundercloud. The ramp curled and he rolled up the other side, pausing only briefly at the edge before skating back down. Up and down he went, like the slow rocking of a great ship, taking his time to get used to the feeling.

If there was one thing Ven loved about Radiant Garden, it was this. Traverse Town had no skate parks, and very few areas where Ven had been allowed to go alone. Not that this had entirely stopped him, of course-- but feeling the wind in his hair and the thunder under his feet as he rode sideways on the half-pipe felt very different from scooting along the sidewalk after school.

To make things even better, it was a cloudy day, and the park was nearly deserted. Social as he was, it was nice to have the whole place to himself while he practiced. It had, after all, been a very long time since he had tried anything more complicated than curbs and short steps.

He was picking it right up, though. Soon he was doing small jumps at the edges of the half-pipe, moving faster down the concrete, occasionally striking a pose during that brief moment when his board rested on the very edge. There was no one around to laugh at him; he might as well take full advantage of that.

He could have sworn he felt a raindrop on his nose. He might have to stop soon, though he was in no mood to do so.

Wanting to get the most he could out of this day, he decided to get a little more adventurous.

He moved faster, surfing on the concrete, grinding at a nearly ninety-degree angle. He whooped as his board cleared the edge of the half-pipe, and he felt for a moment that he was floating, flying even, hanging suspended in the air above the edge for a few glorious seconds.

But then he started to come down, and he had miscalculated; he knew that even before he hit the edge and his front wheels caught, the board staying right where it was as Ven continued forward, feeling he was in slow-motion as he pitched towards solid concrete.

Later he would be equal parts furious with himself for not wearing a helmet, and grateful to his family for years of pressuring him to do sports. On instinct he tucked his head and shoulder in, rolling forward; the concrete was not at all like the padded mats he usually did this on, but he smacked the ground anyway, lessening the impact on his back while his poor hand and arm took the punishment. His feet absorbed the rest of the shock, though friction forced them under him and he took the last meter or two at a lurching downhill run.

Ven came to a stop at the bottom of the half-pipe, thoroughly scraped up and partly winded. "Oww," he wheezed pathetically as he shook out his hand. His skin was completely raw from palm to elbow, and his back burned almost as badly where it had been dragged against the concrete.

He inspected his injuries queasily; at least nothing looked as terrible as it felt, and miraculously he did not seem to be bleeding. Honestly, he was lucky that he had not been more thoroughly maimed. If his family ever learned he had been so reckless, they would probably finish the job. And he wouldn't be allowed to skate for a very long time.

"I guess that's enough excitement for one day," he muttered to himself, rubbing the shoulder that had hit the pavement first.

Luckily his board had clattered to the bottom after him. As he walked stiffly over to collect it, he noticed movement out of the corner of his eye.

About fifty feet away, under the full pipe, a girl was waving at him. Ven looked down sheepishly, hoping she hadn't seen his pathetic wipeout, though she almost certainly had. He waved back awkwardly.

The girl only did so more vigorously, both arms in the air. Ven frowned. Why was she sitting down in the middle of the skating area?

"Hey, are you okay?" he called. She shook her head so hard that Ven could see her blonde bangs whip back and forth even from far away.

He tried to hurry over, though the movement made him wince.

The girl was actually a petite young woman on roller skates, and she looked terribly distressed. Her face was bright red, as was the savaged leg that she held out at an awkward angle. Ven sucked his breath through his teeth in sympathy; it seemed the lady had been through a far worse fall than he had, and in a bare-legged minidress at that.

"Ouch. Do you, um... need some help...?"

The woman glared daggers at him and nodded.

"O-okay. How can I..."

She pointed emphatically away from her.

Now Ven was even more confused. "You... you want me to leave?"

She shook her head furiously. She pointed again, thrusting her arm in the same specific direction.

Ven followed her gaze to where a few small bits of plastic lay on the ground. "Oh! Do you want me to get that for you?"

She nodded.

He set his board down next to her and went to go pick the things up. They were pieces of a phone, he realized; it must have fallen out of her pocket when she had her accident, and wound up way over here.

With a better sense of what she needed, he looked around for more fallen items. He found a flowery zipper wallet that had thankfully stayed shut, and the battery for the phone. He brought them back to the young woman, who snatched them up without a word. She immediately began to put the phone back together, ignoring him.

"Well, you're welcome," Ven huffed, earning him another hateful glare. "Look, do you need anything else?"

She nodded, though her glare was now directed at the phone, which refused to turn on. She bit her lip and tried again. Suddenly she slammed the device against the ground, making Ven jump a little. She looked frighteningly close to tears as she met Ven's eyes again. She mimed writing something on her hand, then held it out as if Ven might hand something to her.

Suddenly it clicked.

"Wait!" he exclaimed. "Can you not talk? Is that it?"

She nodded, her eyes beginning to spill over.

"Oh, no, don't cry! Do you-- I'm a little rusty, but--" He moved his hands to ask, _Do you sign?_

The young woman looked at him in shock, then grinned in relief. _Yes! Oh my god! Yes, I sign!_

"Great! Oh, um--" _Great!_

She gave a huge sniff and hurriedly wiped her eyes. _It's okay. I can hear. Just can't speak._

"Oh, good. I-I mean, not good, that's not... nevermind." Gingerly he got down on one knee so he was on her eye level. "So what happened to you? That scrape looks nasty."

Now it was her turn to look sheepish. _I fell,_ she signed. _Not normal for me._ She took a moment to gather her phone and wallet, and grimaced in pain as she had to shift to stick them into her pockets. She pointed at her extended ankle. _That might be twisted. Help me up?_

"Oh, of course. Here..."

It took Ven about ten minutes to half-carry, half-roll his new friend out of the skatepark and toward the nearest open shop, a cafe with outdoor seating. Somehow they managed to persuade the manager to keep it open, despite the oncoming rain, so Ven did not have to maneuver his companion inside; she was very unwilling to get out of her roller skates, at risk of jostling the injured ankle too much.

Now she rested it heavily on a free chair while Ven got drinks. His allowance would only barely cover the cost of the glorified milkshakes that the two of them chose, but it was the least he could do for causing the cafe so much trouble. He dropped his change into a tip jar, borrowed a pen, and carefully folded up his receipt with a stack of napkins before heading back over.

"Success," he announced proudly. He set down the pen, napkins and receipt before her. "I figured, if your phone still isn't working, you can write some stuff on there-- I know my ASL isn't the best." On the way over, they had run into difficulties both with her trying to sign one-handed and with him forgetting at least eight different words. Judging by her reactions, they were pretty basic ones, too. He really needed to practice.

Now she gave him a tight smile. The phone situation did not seem to have improved; the screen was cracked and completely dark. She sighed heavily and asked, _Can you call someone for me?_

"Sure." He reached for his own phone, then paused. "Um, sorry, I don't think I actually introduced myself, did I? I'm Ventus, Ven for short."

The girl was already at work writing a phone number, but she smiled and took a napkin.

"Tinkerbell," Ven read out loud when she was finished. Then she covered part of it with her hand; when she pointed, he read again. "Tink. That's a pretty cool name."

_I know._ She rolled her eyes and pushed the phone number at him. _Call this guy. I'll tell you what to say._

"I'm on it."

He wound up leaving a long message, littered with awkward pauses. Tink had some very harsh words for this "Peter" about him not being available when he had promised to be, but the sign language Ven knew did not include such vulgar insults and she was unable to write fast enough for him to get it all. He hoped he had gotten the gist of the message across, though.

"Well," he said when they were done, "What do you wanna do now? I can stay with you a while, since I have the working phone, and..." He shrugged. He had not planned to do much more than skate today, and by this point it was starting to seriously rain. The two of them had to squeeze under the cafe umbrella the best they could.

Tink shivered in her minidress. _I guess I should get to a doctor. But you don't have to stick around for all that._

"I really don't mind," Ven insisted. "Just tell me where you need to go. We can take the Corridors, or maybe my brother or sister can bring the car if they're not too busy..." He frowned. That would mean telling someone about his skating injuries, and after he had said he would spend today studying... crap. Maybe Terra would be cool about it.

Tink sipped at her frappe, watching him curiously. _Do they sign too?_

"Only a little. They took Spanish instead." When she raised her eyebrows at the apparent non sequitur, he laughed and explained, "Our dad made us all learn another language when we were kids. They picked Spanish and I picked ASL. And then we all got really out of practice, especially me, since I have no one to practice with." He tried not to pout. Judging by Tink's smirk, he probably failed.

_That explains a lot._

"Maybe you can teach me," Ven suggested hopefully. "Or, y'know, we could just hang out sometime and I'll teach myself, I don't mean to put you on the spot. Maybe we can go skating or something, or--" He was interrupted by his phone buzzing: it was Peter.

Tink laughed silently. _After all this, I'll teach you anything you want,_ she signed, as he fumbled to answer it while looking at her hands. _How to sign, how to skate. Really skate. I'll introduce you to my friends and we'll teach you how to fly._

* * *

 

On Xion's first day of real work, she was so nervous that she could hardly sleep the night before. When her alarm went off, she sprang out of bed to get it, nearly knocking it to the ground in her clumsiness. She squirmed into her usual outfit: a ratty old department store bra, a pair of faded jeans, one of her many plain black t-shirts, and a pair of cheap cotton socks.

She checked her backpack: phone, wallet, keys, work apron, new name tag, tissues and snack bag, plus emergency band-aids, Advil, tampons and pepper spray. Convincing herself that she was as ready as she was ever going to get, she slipped out the bedroom door and padded up the stairs to the guest room.

"Roxas!" she hissed, tapping on the door. "Roxas, we'll be late!"

She heard a groan from within. "We got another hour..."

"But the subway!" she insisted. "It's a weekend and you said...!"

Roxas dragged the door open. He was still in his sleep shorts. "We really don't have to leave yet," he grumbled. Xion bit her lip; he sounded annoyed with her. He soon relented, though, and within a few minutes they were both tip-toeing down the stairs of the small house.

The two scurried into the kitchen to find Grandma and Grampa both awake. Xion greeted them respectfully in Japanese, while Roxas gave them a small "g'morning."

Their grandfather gave Xion only the tiniest of smiles before going back to his newspaper, while their grandmother did not look up at all from the dishes. After so many years, Xion knew their ways. Instead of crowding the small kitchen and wasting time, she grabbed a few granola bars for the road and ushered Roxas out the door. For once he went quickly.

The two of them got to work almost half an hour early. They would both work the opening shift, during which someone would be able to check on Xion and make sure she could handle herself before the lunch rush began.

Xaldin let them in, noting their punctuality with approval. Xion offered him a small smile, which he did not return. Inside, Zexion and Vexen were preparing the deli, while Xigbar (another yellow-eyed boss, whom Roxas and Axel had both deemed a "friendly douchebag") and Luxord made sure the rest of the place was presentable. Larxene, unfortunately, was working customer service today, and counting the drawer; when she caught Xion's eye, she grinned like the devil and moved faster.

Sure enough, the junior employees were in the back room for about five minutes before Larxene made her appearance.

"So," she said as she strolled in, pulling up a chair to the tiny table where they ate their granola bars, "I've been thinking about you, Roxy."

Luxord followed her in, though he opted to stand. "Larxene told me of your romantic intentions," he explained, smiling.

Roxas glared at them both. "Seriously?!"

"Don't worry, kiddo, I want to help you!" Larxene clapped Roxas on the shoulder. Xion could see her fingers digging in. "See, I care about my coworkers, and I think you'd be cute together, but I know you don't have the balls to actually say anything without a little push. So here's my idea: let's make it a competition. We'll bet with our days off, and the winner is whoever gets access to the booty first."

"That's the dumbest thing I've ever--"

"Of course there has to be some basic rules," Larxene went on, talking right over him. "No gathering allies to help you." She gave Xion a pointed look. "No asking outright, and no telling the damsels about this. You have to seduce him properly. Convince him. _He_ has to ask _you_ out."

"That's manipulative!" Roxas protested. "Axel's my friend, I'm not gonna trick him into--"

"Ah, but it wouldn't be a trick, would it?" Luxord asked thoughtfully. "Isn't your interest genuine?"

Roxas sputtered. "Well, yeah, but--"

"So it's settled!" Larxene stood and stretched. "Now, I know what you'll say, that Saix would never agree to change the schedule over this, and that's why we went straight to the big man himself. Xemnas said he'll give vacation days to the winner and whoever bets on her. He's rooting for me, of course." She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "This guy here took pity on you, so congrats, now you're responsible for someone else's vacation time. Hope you're taking this seriously!"

"Why?! I don't-- you--" Roxas looked between the two of them, his face red. "We don't even know if this is possible, okay? If they're even... you know..."

"Interested?" Luxord asked. "That's part of the fun, isn't it?"

"Gay?" Xion offered. She ducked her head when they all stared at her. "I-I mean, we don't even know if everyone's sexuality matches up," she nearly whispered, feeling her face grow hot. "Like, maybe Axel doesn't like boys, and Marluxia... I don't know, I'm sorry..."

"Also part of the fun," Luxord chuckled. "And the main reason I bet on you, Roxas."

Larxene snorted. "Yeah, I'm the one with the sexual preference wild card. We're all pretty sure Axel takes big dick on the reg. Just convince him you're a grownup with grownup parts and you'll be fine."

"We don't even know if they're single," Roxas grumbled.

Larxene rolled her eyes. "Please. No one who works here has a social life." She sighed. "Well, if you won't have fun with me, I can just do us all a favor and confess on your behalf when Axel gets in this afternoon. Would you like that better?"

"No!"

"So you're in, then?"

"No, I--" Roxas buried his face in his hands and let out a cry of frustration. "Why are you doing this?"

The store radio began to play in the distance, signalling them to get back to opening. Larxene sighed and made her way to the door, calling back over her shoulder, "The same reason I do anything. Because I'm bored."

"The competition starts today," Luxord said cheerfully. "Unless you'd like to forfeit, Roxas? I do hope you'll agree to this." He started to go, then stopped and turned to Xion, who had begun to wish she was invisible. "I assume you'd like to bet on your brother, to show your support? It needn't be too much; I only bet one shift."

"Now you listen here," Roxas started, "I expect this sort of thing from Larxene, sure, but you--"

"What was that?" Luxord leaned over the table toward Xion, ignoring him. "Speak up, my dear."

"I said I believe in Roxas," she said shakily, forcing herself to meet his eye. "I bet a week."

"Xion!"

"Oh, excellent! I'll let the boss know." He smiled at them both. "Best of luck, Roxas. I'm sure this will be great fun, whether you get the boy or not." And with that he swept out of the room, leaving the two of them alone.

Roxas immediately turned on his sister. "I'm sorry," she squeaked, trying to shrink into her seat. "I-I just panicked, I don't know what came over me, I--"

Roxas cut her off with a long, aggravated sigh. "Just forget about it," he grumbled, crumpling up his granola bar wrappers and standing up to go. "It's time to get to work."

* * *

 

Woodlands Diner and Bake Shop might have good cakes, but it was a shitty place to work. It was open at odd and irregular hours, was always either too big or too small for the number of customers it had, and was co-owned by seven bumbling old men, who were maybe brothers or cousins or something-- no one was quite sure-- and hardly knew what they were doing.

Usually, a squeaky-voiced teen girl did all the waitressing and coffee making during the day, but she was home with food poisoning today, so Vanitas got to work a double shift after rushing here from his other job. He had left home at six this morning; it was now half past eight and he still had nearly four hours left, plus a very long trip back to the Depths where he lived. His legs ached, his shoulders were worse, and every cute little chime of that fucking front door felt like Satan himself jabbing him in the head.

At least the owner who was playing host today, a bubbly old idiot that they all called Happy, did not mind doing greetings or taking orders. If Vanitas had been forced to do all the friendly shmoozing, he might actually punch someone. Instead he left Happy to most of it and tried to keep out of sight, only coming out from behind the coffee counter to bring food to tables and retrieve dirty dishes, which he brought all the way back to the washer in the name of being helpful.

Luckily, Vanitas was facing the back and refilling the water pitchers when the worst happened.

"Good evening!" called Happy. "Seat yourselves anywhere you'd like!"

So multiple people were coming in. Fucking great, Vanitas thought as he adjusted the tap, making the water pour a bit slower.

"How about over by the window?" someone asked. The voice was familiar, though he could not quite place it.

"It's Aqua's day," another voice gently chided, making Vanitas nearly drop the pitcher. "Let her decide."

Oh, no. No way. Not here too.

But sure enough, it was definitely Aqua Wayfinder who responded, "The window sounds great."

Vanitas turned the water off and stepped back into the bar area, careful to keep the large soda machine between himself and the customers. While Happy distributed menus, Vanitas dared to poke his head around the side of the machine and see: sliding into place at a booth by the corner, which had a good view of the rest of the diner and even part of the back area, were four faces that he had once thought he would never have to see here.

Dumb and Dumber were facing away from him-- a very good thing, since Vanitas did not think he could deal with his least favorite sibling right now. Aqua was looking in his direction, just as prettily made up as she had been in the park, though her smile this time looked genuine as the old fart sat down next to her. They all seemed to be smiling as they chattered away, too absorbed in their idiotic conversation to even glance at their menus.

Happy gave Vanitas a quizzical look as he collected their water, probably wondering why he was still hiding behind the bar. Sooner or later he would have to go out there.

Nope, he decided immediately. Not today. He had reached his bullshit quota for the week.

"Bathroom," he muttered quickly, ducking behind the register as he made his way there.

Luckily no one noticed him, though he could not count on that for much longer. He sat on the toilet without going, resting his tired legs and furiously texting Sora, who was not responding even though he had said he wasn't doing anything tonight, the bastard.

After spending what seemed like a sufficient amount of time in there to make someone worry, Vanitas took a deep breath, dragged himself back onto his feet, splashed some water on his face and scurried to the back of the diner.

"I'm sick," he announced. "The rush is over and you don't need me. I'm going home."

Ignoring the protests of the two cooks, he corrected the shift schedule on the wall-- they did not even have a proper computer for calculating hours-- before gathering his things and marching out the back door. Just as he was about to rev up his motorcycle, his phone buzzed.

"What," he snapped into it.

" _Are you okay?_ " came Sora's tinny voice. " _I just saw your texts!_ "

"Yeah, I'm not coming up this week after all." He had been planning to use tonight's overtime to help pay for a day off; instead he would only have enough for the bare necessities. Mentally he kicked himself for buying that beer last Thursday. Only one treat at a time, god damn it.

" _Oh._ " Of course he was disappointed. " _Well, I can go down there if you want!_ "

"Don't. I have work." Maybe he could make the trip happen next Wednesday, if he skipped grocery shopping tomorrow and did without breakfast for another week or so... yeah, that should do it. "Next week, kid, I promise."

" _All right..._ " Sora paused, and Vanitas could just picture him frowning. " _Are you okay, Van?_ "

"Fine."

" _Okay, but I meant the truth._ " He chuckled a little. Even Vanitas almost smiled, though he did not rise to the bait. He was not about to start the Ventus argument again. After a moment of silence, Sora sighed. " _Mmkay, I see how it is. We'll do something next week. Love you!_ "

"Mm-hm."

Vanitas hung up the phone and donned his bike helmet, still thinking hateful thoughts toward Ven and his entourage. He had been looking forward to that trip, and now it had been taken from him. Even what little comfort he had at this job was gone; what if they became regulars? He could handle himself just fine if he ran into another one of them at the gym or wherever, but work was another matter. He would not tolerate them seeing him in uniform, nor would he let his already-shitty job be made worse by having to watch Ven's replacement family buy him cakes while Vanitas waited tables and worried about paying for his next meal.

He let the roar of his motorcycle comfort him as he started for home. Things were different now, he reminded himself. Sure, his jobs were terrible, but they were both restaurants and they were both honest work. Sure, he lived in an illegally windowless studio apartment in one of the worst parts of the city, and the drive there sucked balls, but it had a bed and it had heat and it was  _his_. He was an adult now, and unlike the brat, he knew how to survive without three doting caretakers paying all his bills. And he would keep surviving, even if he lost another shitty job.

Vanitas leaned forward on his bike, gritting his teeth. Fuck the Wayfinders. Fuck every last one of them.

* * *

 

"Here's to you, Aqua," Eraqus said warmly, raising his coffee cup. "And to another step towards a bright future."

Terra and Ventus joined in the toast with their water and juice respectively, and Aqua beamed at them all. She may have been officially hired some time ago, but she had yet to actually start working. Apparently she was going to be at some newer library branch way off in the Depths, a highly questionable neighborhood that came with a horrid commute, but she did not seem overly concerned. When it came to herself, Aqua did not worry much about inconvenience.

Still, Eraqus felt a little guilty that the celebration had taken so long to put together. His only daughter deserved better.

"How about your search, Terra?" he asked while they waited for their food. "Did you ever hear back from the woman you called last week?"

"I thought this Aqua's day," Terra responded, eyebrows raised. "Didn't you hear that, Ven?"

"Sure did," Ventus chirped. "No fussing over us boys today!"

"No fussing at all," Aqua clarified, smiling at her father. "We're supposed to be celebrating the future, aren't we?"

"Very well, point taken." Eraqus returned her smile. She had gotten a new blazer today in preparation for the new job, a well-structured garment in dark blue that made his little girl look very grown up indeed. He cleared his throat and changed tack. "How are other things going, then? I feel I've hardly seen any of you since the move."

"Says the guy who's _always_ at work." That stung Eraqus a little, but Ventus rolled his eyes, oblivious. "I'm home all the time, while Aqua's off getting jobs and Terra's basically living at the gym. No one knows how to have fun anymore."

"The gym is fun," Terra insisted. "I've always gone there a lot, you know that." 

"Not every night!" Ventus's tone bordered on whining. "I keep trying to get someone to go to the movies with me, but you're always busy and no one else likes action stuff..."

"I don't mind it," Aqua told him. "I'll go with you. But Terra, Ven's right, you are gone a lot."

"I thought we said no fussing," Terra muttered. He frowned at the table for a moment, then went on, "Well, since you're so worried, I've been trying to meet up with some of our old high school friends. Remember Hercules?" They all nodded. "Well, apparently he still lives here, and he's going to some new martial arts club. I have to get back in shape if I want to keep up with him."

Ventus wrinkled his nose. "Keep up with Hercules?"

"Yeah, you should see him now. He's a good two feet taller and I think he's got a hundred pounds on me."

Now it was Aqua's turn to look dubious. "Really? Herc is bigger than you?"

"I can show you pictures right now," Terra offered, already reaching for his pocket.

"No cell phones at the table, please," Eraqus reminded him. "Terra, that sounds like a wonderful idea. I've been reconnecting with a few old coworkers, myself. Aqua, Ventus, how about you?"

"I haven't run into anyone," Aqua said quietly, sipping at her tea. "Maybe I'll text somebody. Or maybe I'll just hang out with Ven until I start work. You don't mind me following you around, right?" She smiled at him.

Ventus grinned right back. "Sounds like a great idea. I'll take my board around town and you can literally follow me. You'll be in even better shape than Terra in no time!"

Eraqus raised an eyebrow at the mention of Ventus's skateboard. He had never approved of that device. "Ventus, your safety pads are still in storage," he reminded the boy. "I certainly hope you don't plan to ride without them."

"'Course not." He looked down, making Eraqus immediately suspicious. Before he could ask any sharp questions, however, their food arrived.

"Veggie burger with extra onions and sweet potato fries!" their waiter called out. He was a very small man, and he struggled to hold up the tray. Eraqus found it odd that he had no help this evening, but he supposed it was a small restaurant, after all. Perhaps they had not anticipated a full table.

Once they had all tucked into their food, Ventus asked about other items that still remained in boxes. "I want to dig up my old sign language textbooks," he explained. "I've gotten really rusty, you know?"

"Do you need to use it sometime soon?" Aqua asked him, to which Ventus merely shrugged.

"Just trying not to forget everything before I go back to school. You never know who you'll meet, right?"

"True enough," Terra agreed, smiling. "I think most of your old school stuff is in the box under the winter coats. I'll help you get it tomorrow."

Eraqus observed his sons over the table. They were both hiding something; he was sure of it now. With Terra it was probably innocuous-- he was off brooding again, perhaps, or he really was trying to reconnect with all his old friends, including those of whom Eraqus did not approve. Terra liked familiarity. In any case, it was probably better to let that one go; Terra had more than learned his lesson on staying out of trouble.

Ventus, on the other hand... Eraqus had no doubt that he had been skating without a helmet again, despite repeated warnings. Perhaps he _would_ ask Aqua to keep an eye on the boy, assuming she now had the time. He resolved to mention it to her later, in private.

Mentally he shook himself. There he went, worrying again about the boys when he should be enjoying a dinner in Aqua's honor. He resolved to put that question out of his mind, and simply be proud of her tonight. She was, after all, the only one he no longer had to worry about-- and the only one who kept no secrets from the family.


	4. Long Days at Low Pay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Isa and Lea have a quiet night in, Terra checks his progress, Xion deals with a number of difficult people, and two friends and business partners have their own quiet night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two separate fic updates in two days! Look at that productivity. And hey, this even has a few hints and reveals, and some character moments for people who haven't gotten a spotlight yet! Can't think of much more to say, other than begging for feedback, so... enjoy!

It was a quiet weekday night in apartment 5D when the third inappropriately-flirtatious pizza delivery happened. Isa sat hunched over on the couch, glaring at the work chart on his laptop, occasionally shoving his glasses back up the bridge of his nose while Lea played Mario Kart next to him.

"We should have people over sometime," the redhead mused, leaning to the side as he turned his car in the game. "This is no fun to play alone."

"Don't play it, then," Isa said after a beat. Marluxia wanted the entire first weekend in July off, which might be a good thing if his schedule was to overlap Vexen's as little as possible, but such a busy weekend required at least two people behind the customer service desk at all times, and while Isa's best friend might be willing to work back-to-back double shifts to do him a favor, he certainly could not expect it of Larxene, and...

Lea tilted his head to the side again, nudging Isa's shoulder.

"What?"

"I said you should join me." Lea narrowed his eyes at the laptop screen. "You're not working at home again, are you?"

"Just the schedule for next month." There was just no other way; he would have to cover that Saturday himself. Which meant manager duties would fall to his superiors, assuming they deigned to come in, and then god only knew what horrors would befall the back room...

Lea was now staring over his shoulder. He was just about the only one allowed to do so, and Isa still did not entirely care for the behavior. "Why do I get the feeling I won't get a day off with the munchkins anytime soon?"

Isa cursed himself silently. He had forgotten about that request. "Do you want to do my job?" he asked in frustration.

"Hell no. Especially if it involves working off the clock like this." Lea nudged him again. "C'mon, leave that for the office. This couch is supposed to be our sanctuary, remember?"

"Says the one who wants to fit guests on it." Setting aside the holiday weekend problem for now, he shuffled the cashier schedule so that the three of them had a few weekdays off together. Luxord had mentioned he preferred doubles so that he could have more days off, so the registers were taken care of. As for customer service, Marluxia could open, and Larxene could work evenings, and if they really needed another person up there then Saix himself could do a bit of overtime. There was really no way to avoid that, he realized.

"Hey. I'm serious." Lea nudged him more insistently, earning himself a dirty look. "This stress level is above your pay grade, and I won't have it in the house."

"This has to get done, Lea."

"It can wait. Or someone else can do it. Let Mansex run his own stupid store for once."

Isa looked at his friend sharply. "You know, one of these days you're going to call him that to his face, and I will not be there to defend you."

"Pfff. I'm not afraid of that old weirdo. He's probably heard it before anyway." Lea sat up straighter on the couch, stretching his back. "Speaking of work, though, the hot pizza guy came by to ask for you."

That, at least, was a distraction. "He what?"

"Yup. Apparently his name is Terra, and get this, Roxas knows him.  _And_  he has a brother." Lea grinned. "Maybe he can set me up. Or I'll just take your sloppy seconds, if you don't mind."

"Slow down a moment. When was this?" Isa had only half-expected the man to show up, and Lea might have had a little more shame about it. Isa frowned. "Why would he be asking for me?"

"Oh, I can think of a couple good reasons." Lea waggled his eyebrows suggestively. "But you can ask him yourself. He said he's working tonight."

Now it was Isa's turn to get suspicious. "He told you this when he came by?"

"No, about twenty minutes ago. Oh yeah, I got a number." Lea's grin turned wicked. "He'll probably be here soon, actually. Better get dressed."

Isa glared at his friend. "You might have mentioned this sooner," he said icily. Isa himself had already taken out his contacts and washed his hair, which hung damp from a loose ponytail; Lea was in his boxers, for god's sake.

"I like to keep you on your toes," Lea teased. "That's what you get for bringing work shit home again. Oh, that'll be him!" The door buzzed loudly, just as Lea finished talking. He made no move to get up.

With an exasperated sigh, Isa shut his computer. "You will regret this," he promised, even as he reached up to get the door.

"Oh, you'll thank me later." Lea started up his game again, still looking disgustingly pleased with himself. Isa made sure to spend extra time blocking the television as he stalked off toward the bedroom for something to cover himself. He was not about to let anyone, especially some rudely attractive delivery man, see him in an undershirt.

He desperately needed to do laundry, he realized as he dug through his drawers. He yanked a random shirt over his head, changed into decent pants, and had time to hurriedly finger-comb his hair by the time the doorbell rang. There was nothing to be done about the glasses.

"You forgot to powder your nose," Lea told him when he re-emerged. Isa responded with a very rude suggestion as to what  _he_  forgot to do, which only made the idiot laugh.

Steeling himself, Isa answered the door.

And there was Terra, of course, smiling a little and holding the pizza box on one hip. "Hello again," he said brightly. "Quiet night tonight?"

"For once, yes." Isa could feel his abominable roommate's stare, though he was out of Terra's line of vision. "How much is it this time?"

"Already paid for, actually. I just need you to sign." He handed over the paper and a pen. Isa made sure to check the tip Lea had given; he supposed it was acceptable.

"I heard you came by my store," Isa ventured, not liking the awkward silence while Terra watched him scribble.

"Oh, that? Yeah." Terra grinned, though it faltered a little as he took the paper back. "I've been meaning to ask, though-- you work with Roxas Bennett, right?"

He could not help a tiny glance at Lea. "We do, yes."

Terra bit his lip. "Could you, um... not mention to him that I have this job? He might bring it up to my brother, and I'm kind of... not ready for my family to know about it. I know that sounds really strange, but... yeah."

Isa gave him a wry smile, remembering his own mother's comments on the work she saw as beneath him. "We'll keep quiet about it."

"Great." Terra smiled back at him-- his eyes did this adorable little crinkling at the corners, and he somehow looked presentable even with helmet hair and one of those obnoxious reflector vests. Isa's own hair made him look like a sixteen-year-old girl when the bangs were unstyled, and he was suddenly very conscious of the shirt he had thrown on at the last minute. He resisted the urge to cross his arms over the dorky moon design on the chest, instead raising an eyebrow at the pizza box, which Terra still held as they awkwardly stared at each other.

"Oh," Terra muttered, apparently snapping out of it. He handed over the goods, then added quickly, "Sorry, it's just... that's your natural eye color?"

Isa blinked at him. "Yes," he said stiffly, adjusting his glasses. He had almost forgotten.

"It's nice." Terra stuffed the delivery order form into his back pocket, a convenient reason to look away. "Like a blueish green. Reminds me of spring or something." He smiled again, his ears and cheeks just a little more pink. "Well, anyway, enjoy the food. See you next time."

Isa could only manage a small nod goodbye. What was he supposed to say after that?

He closed the door, listening to the footsteps down the hall. Then he scowled at Lea, who had paused his game and had one fist stuffed into his mouth, apparently biting his knuckles and holding his breath.

At least he had the grace to wait until the sound of footsteps disappeared entirely before he burst into laughter.

"Shut it," Isa snapped, marching off to the bedroom to change again. On the way there he dumped the pizza box into Lea's lap, so roughly that the contents nearly spilled. "This is entirely your fault."

"You have  _nice eyes!_ " Lea practically howled. "Oh my god, Isa, the look on your  _face!_ "

Isa chose not to dignify that with a response as he changed out of the moon shirt. Why did he even have this thing? It looked stupid and it was far too warm. He should have just forced Lea to answer the door in his damn underwear. Not that Terra deserved to be made uncomfortable like that again.

By the time he strode back out, Lea's giggles had subsided. "Sorry," he said, not sounding sorry at all.

"Hmph." Isa resumed his seat, tossing his damp hair over his shoulder so it smacked Lea in the face. Ignoring his roommate's sputtering, Isa reopened his laptop and prepared to get back to work.

"Seriously, though," Lea said as he dug into his pizza, "do you want the guy's number? He obviously likes you."

"If he wants me to have it then he'll give it to me himself," Isa said haughtily, "and not because you weaseled it out of him."

"Suit yourself." Fortunately the act of shoveling pizza into his mouth distracted him from pursuing this any longer, though Isa knew he had not heard the end of it.

For a while he just stared at the computer screen, willing himself to focus again, knowing it was probably a lost cause at this point. Privately he wondered if perhaps he  _should_  ask for Terra's number... he supposed it had been a long time since he had messed around with someone.

Mentally he shook himself. No, that would not be wise. Isa only had the capacity to handle a few major things in his life at once, and it was only recently that he had learned to balance them well. He was not about to add a relationship to the mix. Or any sort of social life, for that matter. He liked going without the looming threat of another stress crisis, and besides, he was not exactly a catch. It was better not to set himself up for disappointment.

Soon Lea went back to his game, gradually slinking back down on the couch. Eventually Isa gave up on work and messed around on the internet for a while, trying to let the background noise from the television drown out his muddled thoughts.

Things were better off this way. He knew that by now.

* * *

 

Well, at least Terra's legs were in shape.

He thought of this as he collapsed on his bed, too exhausted to do much more than shower. Sooner or later, he would have to start taking the Corridors into the city. Biking across the bridge twice a day, on top of all his deliveries, would soon become unfeasible.

He stretched his legs out on the mattress, trying to massage some of the stiffness out of them. At least tomorrow was his day off-- before it all started again on the next night.

Somewhere in his bag, his phone buzzed. He checked it without really looking, the knuckles of his other hand still kneading his thigh. Had he stretched before going out? He couldn't remember.

He had a Facebook message: Hercules had finally responded. He still did judo, apparently at some new place that Terra had never heard of. Terra was not actually all that keen on meeting anyone from high school-- they would wonder what had happened to him since then, and he was beyond tired of dealing with that chapter of his life.

But Herc had always been a nice guy. He wouldn't ask questions if he knew Terra was uncomfortable. And hopefully he would be okay with covering for Terra if his family asked too many questions about his whereabouts on work nights. The gym excuse was already wearing thin.

He made tentative plans, hoping he sounded properly enthused. Maybe a group setting would be better, and it would be easier both to dodge uncomfortable topics, and to ignore the guilt he felt over basically using his friend. It wasn't like it was Herc's fault that Terra couldn't get a real job.

The dirty deed done, Terra plugged in his phone for the night and heaved himself back onto his feet. He needed encouragement; maybe it was time to check his progress.

On top of his dresser, he kept a big orange piggy bank that his father had given him when he was nine. He had to use both hands to lift it, which made him smile; he had emptied it of change before the move, yet it was already getting unwieldy. He brought it to a clear space on the bed and set it down gently on its side, where it made the mattress sink a few inches.

He did his best to be quiet as he shook out the various coins and bills, and added the small wad of cash from this week's tips. Tonight's customers had mostly been stingy; after four hours of work, not including the time spent on his commute, he only had eighteen dollars to show for it.

It took him a few minutes to sort through all the change, then pile up the bills and write the new totals on a crumpled little piece of paper that he kept with his stash. He had about fifteen dollars in coins, nearly half of them pennies; eighty-six in singles, some of those stuck together so they had to be counted twice; forty in fives and ninety in tens; five hundred and sixty in twenty dollar bills; and within a couple of much-abused bank envelopes that he had to work to pry out of the little hole at the bottom of his orange piggy, he had a few neat stacks of hundreds.

When all was said and done, Terra had amassed almost seven thousand dollars. Not bad, he thought, for just a few years of menial labor. And it reaffirmed what he had suspected; while this under-the-table delivery job might be a lot riskier and a lot less ambiguous in its legality, it was a much more steady income than all the snow-shoveling, leaf-raking, and dog-walking that he had occupied his free time with back in Traverse Town.

So it seemed he would be staying with Pirate Pizza, even if they never got around to putting him on the books. Hell, if he could keep it going long enough-- especially if he still did the occasional odd job and maybe got a legitimate income on top of all this-- he might even reach his goal this year.

With a renewed sense of purpose, he began stuffing everything back into the piggy bank. As much as lying still bothered him, he knew he was doing the right thing, even he had to take a different route to get there. His dad and siblings just wouldn't understand.

Very gently, Terra replaced the piggy bank on his dresser. He brushed his teeth, washed the money grime off his hands, and finally crawled into bed. Before he drifted off for the night he reached for his phone and opened the browser app, smiling a little as he checked some of his saved pages. Yes, ten thousand dollars ought to do it.

He knew he could never repay his family for all he had cost them, but this, at least, was a start.

* * *

 

This year the Fourth of July would fall on a Saturday. The weather promised to be lovely-- it was shaping up to be quite a nice summer-- and it seemed absolutely everyone wanted to have a weekend barbecue. And of course the ideal time to shop for last-minute barbecue supplies was on Friday evening, after work or school. And Xion came to know this because from about four in the afternoon until ten o'clock at night, Market XIII was in utter chaos.

"Hurry up, you fool!" the woman at her register spat, as Xion searched her cheat sheet frantically for the PLU code of yellow bell peppers. The woman complained loudly about getting the "slow" cashier, and Xion was fairly sure that she meant it in more than one way. Behind her, someone else scoffed and shoved their cart into a different line.

Just one more hour, Xion thought desperately. Just one more hour and she could go home.

She read the woman's total in a shaky voice, and in response got a credit card thrown right in her face. It hit her cheekbone and clattered to the floor before she could catch it.

"Imbecile!" The woman leaned over the counter while Xion stooped to gather the card from the floor, clumsy with nerves. She stood and swiped the card; her hands were shaking so much that she had to try it a few times, all while the customer glared down at her as if Xion were something particularly nasty on the bottom of her high-heeled shoe.

"Th-the card was declined," she realized in dismay. "Do you have another--"

"Impossible! I just paid it off; what did you do, girl?!" She leaned over further, staring at Xion's screen. She smelled of rancid stale smoke and too much perfume.

"I-I just..." Xion tried swiping the card again, getting the same result.

"You must have charged it multiple times! How  _dare_  you!" She seized Xion's wrist with a clawlike hand and yanked the card away. "I want your manager immediately! I refuse to pay for this twice!"

"Is there a problem here?" Xaldin had appeared, evidently to take away the stack of shopping baskets piling up by Xion's bagging station. He rested his big hands on their edges as he appraised the woman, apparently undisturbed by the cacophony around the registers.

The woman bristled and drew herself up. In her heels she was nearly as tall as Xaldin, though not even half as wide. "Are you the manager?"

"No. Shall I fetch him? It may be a moment." His eyes flicked to Xion's line, which was still growing.

"Then why are you wasting my time with this?" she demanded. "I said I want him immediately!"

"Very well. Turn off your light," Xaldin told Xion while he gathered up the baskets. A chorus of groans and curses sounded from her line when she obeyed, and she wished fervently that she could sink into the floor and disappear. It was worse when Xaldin looked at her expectantly.

Oh, right. She had a button to call a boss. She pressed it now, her fingers still shaking.

As they waited, the woman began to tap her foot loudly, while Xaldin remained impassive. After some time she asked haughtily, "Don't you have somewhere to be, maintenance boy?"

Xaldin narrowed his eyes a fraction while Xion struggled not to gape. Xaldin must be at least this woman's age, perhaps older; half her head was white, but it was obviously bleached. Oh god, was it a weird race thing? Xaldin's skin was a light brown-- he was probably mixed, like Xion and her brothers-- while the woman was pasty white. Was this Xion's first experience of racism in the workplace? Or was she simply desperate to think that the woman was angry about anything other than Xion's complete incompetence? It was probably that.

Either way, Xaldin stayed put until Saix arrived, looking intimidating as ever. He looked sharply at Xaldin, who nodded at him and went back to gathering baskets.

"What seems to be the problem?" Saix asked, looking between Xion and her customer.

"This incompetent little trollop is trying to steal from me," the woman declared.

Saix raised his eyebrows, and Xion wanted to die.

"Her credit card was declined," she tried to explain, in a near whisper.

Saix pursed his lips, looking her over. "Have you taken your break yet?" he asked finally.

Xion nodded.

"Stay up here, then. In the bagging station." He took her place behind the register and slid his manager key into the machine. "Ma'am, it says here that your card was declined. Do you have another form of payment?"

"My card was declined because your fool of an employee swiped it twice!"

"That is impossible, as your items have not been paid for." Like Xaldin, he seemed not at all intimidated by the woman's rage. "Do you have another form of payment?"

"No, and I refuse to pay for these after the way I have been treated!"

"I'll void the transaction, then." He typed a code in, his fingers lightning-quick. "Xion, carry on." He flicked her light back on and stepped aside, cool as anything. Xion scurried back into place, as customers scrambled to get back into her line.

The woman nearly shrieked in fury. "You  _imbeciles!_  I am never coming here again!" she shouted at Saix. "I will report this girl to the police, and I will report  _you_  to corporate! I'll have both your jobs, mark my words!"

Saix was already summoning Xaldin to get the discarded items. "Sorry to hear that. We have no 'corporate,' however. Xion, is there anything else?"

"No," she muttered, awed in spite of herself. No wonder he was so exasperated with her all the time, if this was how he handled difficult people. Xion hated how easy she was to fluster.

Saix saw the woman out-- she was still shouting threats-- while Xaldin gathered up her things and hauled them off. Xion's next customer, thankfully, was perfectly patient, though Xion's frayed nerves made her even slower than usual.

"I think you're doing just fine, dear," the woman told her, smiling. "Are you new?"

Xion gave her a shaky smile. "Yeah." There was more produce-- she had to look up codes again. She had seen Roxas type these in from memory a bunch of times, but she simply could not get her head around so many at once. She only knew bananas and one type of tomatoes so far.

"You'll learn," the woman said kindly. "I've been coming here for so many years, I remember when that other young man was new."

Years? Roxas hadn't been here that long. "If it's the short blond on register one, that's my brother," Xion said, relaxing just a little. Maybe not all her customers were that bad.

"Oh, how sweet!" The lady had a checkbook out, which made Xion nervous all over again. She had barely gotten to practice with the check machine. "But I meant the other young man-- the one who was just here. I suppose he's a manager now."

Well, that was interesting. The idea that Saix had ever been in her position filled Xion with curiosity, but it was far too busy to sit and have conversations with sweet old ladies, no matter how much she wanted to.

Instead she read off the lady's total, and got through the process of accepting the check without too much issue. She smiled at the name-- Fauna Fae was almost as unusual as Shion spelled with an X-- and promised to say hello to Roxas on the lady's behalf.

The next few customers were not in the mood to talk, and Xion got through the rest of the night mercifully without incident. One good thing about these hellishly busy days, apparently, was that time seemed to fly by. For the cashiers, at least-- the deli was closing half an hour behind schedule, even though all three of its employees were present.

When Xaldin locked the door after the very last stragglers left, about twenty minutes after closing, they all breathed a collective sigh of relief. Xion's feet cramped up with every step, and her shoulders felt like two solid knots, but she had made it.

"Time to clean up!" Larxene said brightly, and was greeted with a number of filthy looks. The store was an absolute mess: carts and baskets were everywhere, produce was in disarray, someone had spilled no less than three cartons of soy milk over by the cereal section, and almost nothing on the shelves was in the right place. Demyx took one look at the disaster and whined that he would be here all night.

Xion stretched as best she could, and went to work getting her aisle's candy and magazines back into order. She felt she could go to sleep right now, but none of them could leave until the drawers were all counted and their assigned areas were clean. She did not know how she would be able to work evening and weekend shifts once school started again; her schedule gave her no choice, of course, and the thought made her shudder.

"Do you require assistance?"

She looked up at the voice. Xaldin was standing nearby, watching her struggle to replace something in one of the higher magazine displays. He plucked the thing out of her hands and put it back where it belonged, then began handing her items that customers had piled on top of the display.

"Thank you," Xion mumbled. Why were all her coworkers so intimidating? Even when they tried to be helpful they made her nervous. "And, um, thanks for earlier too."

"Yeah, what was that about?" Roxas asked from the register over, where he was gathering boxes of tic-tacs off the floor. "Someone was yelling at you guys about theft?"

"Yes, and we have another threat to call 'corporate.'" Xaldin shook his head. "Why these people remain convinced that we have such a thing is beyond me."

Marluxia laughed nearby. He had come over to count the drawers, beginning with Roxas. "Corporate would seem to be myself, since the number for the customer service desk is the only one available for complaints."

"And you just play along, do you?" Xaldin asked, still straightening the upper magazines. Xion left him to it while she did the candy nearby.

"Oh, I make apologies and vague promises that 'appropriate measures' will be taken to 'resolve' their 'issue,'" Marluxia said delicately. He placed a stack of bills in an odd little machine that shuffled through them in less than a second. "It's far easier than trying to correct them, you know."

Roxas frowned up at him. "Yeah, until they come back next time and ask why someone they yelled at is still working here. Just how much do you say to them?"

"I provide emotional comfort, and promise to solve their problems with all the speed and efficiency of anyone's 'corporate.'" Marluxia shut Roxas's drawer and smiled at him. "Not a penny off. Excellent work."

"Emotional comfort is not what these people need," Xaldin scoffed. He drew a cart up to Xion's station and began loading items into it for restocking. "It's a disgrace, all these grown adults throwing temper tantrums. Incidentally, Xion, if one of them ever lays a hand on you again, you're to alert someone immediately, is that clear?"

"They did what?!" Roxas demanded.

Xaldin ignored him. "Is that clear?" he repeated, staring down at Xion, who nodded. "Good," he said, and whisked the cart away.

"Roxas, calm yourself. Between Saix and Xaldin, I'm sure it's been handled." Marluxia was going through Xion's drawer now, making her bite her lip nervously. Today had gone by so fast, she was almost certain to have screwed something up...

Roxas did not look convinced. "Are you hurt?" he asked Xion. "What'd that old turdmuffin do to you?"

"Turdmuffin?" Xion asked, while Marluxia stifled a laugh. She had gotten used to the way her brothers liked to insult people, but every now and then she still heard a new one. Roxas continued to glare, though, so she explained, "Her card was declined and she got upset. She grabbed me sort of like this--" Xion gripped her own wrist to demonstrate-- "and took her card back. That's all." She shrugged. "She was a little mean, but I'm okay."

"What a complete bag of salty shriveled dicks," Roxas proclaimed. "Listen, Xion, you don't have to take that from anyone. It was lucky that Xaldin was there, but next time that happens, you make a huge fuss about it, okay?"

"Just do as he says and call Saix over. I'm told he doesn't stand for that sort of thing." Marluxia wrote down a total, frowning a little, then started going through the twenties again. "Or call Axel; he's very protective of new hires. Ah, here it is." He held up a fifty dollar bill. "These go under the drawer, not with the twenties. Be careful next time."

Xion's heart skipped a beat. Oh god, what if she had given that away by mistake? She really was incompetent. "S-sorry."

"She's new," Roxas added defensively. "She's still getting used to everything."

Marluxia did not look angry, however. "It happens to the best of us," he agreed, fixing his calculations. "With that taken care of, you're thirty-eight cents over. Probably a result of slippery fingers, not much to worry about."

"Sorry," she squeaked again.

A big, delicate hand rested on her shoulder. She looked up; Marluxia was giving her an unexpectedly kind smile. "You cannot let them fluster you," he said gently. "Some people are like ill-trained animals; they can smell fear. They have to be taught that they cannot get their way by bullying you."

Roxas snorted. "Animals, huh? Aren't you the one who just agrees with them until they piss off?"

"Saying yes is sometimes an effective way of saying no," Marluxia explained, taking his hand away. "These bottom-feeders call 'corporate' for one of two reasons: to feel powerful, or to instigate a fight. By agreeing with whatever they say, you rob them of that fight, and by giving empty promises that they can later see were never acted upon, they are made to feel just how powerless they are in this situation." He counted out thirty-eight cents from Xion's drawer and gave it to her just as Roxas looked the other way. When she looked up in alarm, he merely smiled and closed her fingers over it.

"We who work in customer service can either make or ruin someone's day, if we are truly determined," Marluxia continued. He gathered the checks and larger bills, then shut Xion's drawer and locked it, as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. "Of course every action carries a certain risk, but such is life. You have more power than you might realize, Xion. Try and remember that."

Power? Xion had never felt powerful, not once in her life, and especially not now. But before she could argue with Marluxia, he had already gathered up his cash-counting machine and proceeded to the last register, where Luxord greeted him. Xion crammed the change into her pocket, where it felt far too heavy.

"Weird, isn't he?" Roxas asked quietly, making her jump. "I have no idea what Larxene sees in him."

Xion shrugged. If she thought about it, she supposed she could understand why a person like Larxene would go for someone that clever and sneaky, just as Roxas might go for someone sweet like Axel. Not to mention that Marluxia might be the prettiest person in the whole store, if not the whole city. Not that Xion would ever say so.

"I'm still sorry about that, by the way," she muttered to Roxas now, as they finished straightening up her register together. "I didn't mean to help her badger you into--"

"Shh, not here." He glanced around, frowning. "Look, I'm not mad, okay? Just forget about it. I'll get us out of this somehow."

Xion had her doubts about that, but before she could voice them, another coworker appeared at the end of her aisle.

"Are there any abandoned deli items here?" Zexion asked, carrying a basket with a few such things. Xion looked around; there was a small container of potato salad that had been left by her conveyor belt, shoved into a Snickers display. Its price tag was ripped, and it was warm enough to have been there a while.

"Just this," she said, handing it over. The top was slightly inflated.

Zexion looked at it in disgust and held the basket out so he did not have to touch it. "That's probably been there since yesterday. Wonderful." He continued down the line to collect several piles of sliced meat and cheese from Luxord's register.

"I can't believe what people leave behind," Xion commented, fixing the last of the candy. "Do they have to find all that stuff every night?"

"Yeah, but there's usually not this much." Roxas sighed. "They always have a rough time on holidays. I think Zexion was supposed to go home like an hour ago--"

"Bosses are coming, everyone," Marluxia announced as he passed by them again, carrying cash and checks back to customer service. "Gird your loins."

Roxas rolled his eyes, but Xion straightened up immediately. Bosses? Would she finally get to meet the owner?

It seemed she would, since three men strode up the aisle toward them, only two of which she recognized. Saix went straight to customer service to finish closing out all the registers, looking quite annoyed; Xigbar found Demyx and helped him with the restocking carts, though not before having a good laugh at his misery. The third man went straight for Xion.

"Ah, our young number fourteen," he said in a slow, deep voice. "We meet at long last." He extended a hand to her.

Xemnas was not the tallest of their number, nor his shoulders the broadest, but he gave the impression of being much larger than he was. He wore no apron, but he was in all black, from his fitted button-down shirt to a pair of slacks that looked far too nice for his cramped little store. Long silvery hair splayed out over his shoulders, along with a black pea coat that he wore like a cape. Golden eyes-- real ones, not at all like Saix's obvious contacts-- stood out sharply against his brown skin, and there was something in his smile that made Xion want to run very far away.

Instead she swallowed and put her small hand in his. He squeezed it firmly, lingering a little too long, and her skin crawled all the way up her arm.

"Congratulations on surviving your first holiday rush," he said, still with that awful smile. "And please accept my belated welcome to the team."

Xion nodded. She did not trust herself to speak, not under that horribly  _familiar_  yellow gaze.

Thankfully, Zexion rescued her, calling Xemnas away to deal with some issue at the deli. Apparently the entire store's stock of mayonnaise was running out, and Vexen was just about ready to throw a fit.

Roxas nudged her. "You okay? I think it's time for us to go..."

Xion nodded and followed him towards the back to clock out. She said nothing as they gathered their things, only nodded stiffly at everyone while Roxas made their goodbyes, and remained quiet as they shuffled through the doors. Only when they were far out of sight did she reach out and grab her brother by the elbow.

"Why didn't you tell me?!" she hissed, finally letting her terror bubble to the surface. "You've been here forever and you never even mentioned it!"

Roxas blinked at her, nonplussed. "Tell you what?"

"Xemnas!" Xion felt she might scream. Her nerves could not take much more of this. "Didn't you  _notice?_  You've been working for one of  _them_  for almost a year now and you never told anyone?!"

"Oh, that." Roxas ducked his head a little. "Sorry, I think I kind of forgot about that detail..."

"Forgot!" Xion let go of him to run her hands through her hair, so hard she might have pulled some out. Her voice was rising in pitch but she could not help it. "You just  _forgot!_ "

"Hey, whoa." Roxas put a tentative hand on her arm, flinching when she yanked it away. "I'm sorry, alright? I didn't think--"

"You didn't think about maybe warning me that we were both working for one of-- of  _that_  family?!" Was she hyperventilating? Oh god, she could not go home like this. Her grandparents would ask what was going on, and she would have to tell them, and then they would find out about this, and then she and Roxas would both lose their jobs as best, and at worst Jii-san and Baa-san would stop trusting Roxas and kick him out of the attic before the summer was done, and then his life would be in an upheaval and it would all be because Xion couldn't get a fucking grip on her emotions--

"I'm sorry, okay?" Roxas gripped her firmly by the shoulders. "Look, I've been working here so long that I don't even think about it anymore. It's not even an issue for me, that's why I forgot. He's barely around and I don't think he even knows who we are. You're making a big deal out of nothing." He squeezed her shoulders. "But I am really sorry, okay? I never meant for that to get sprung on you."

She stared hard at him, searching, trying to will herself to calm down. "I'm sorry I yelled," she said finally. "But, Roxas, this isn't nothing."

"Okay, it's not, and I'm sorry." He sighed and let go. "Listen, I... I know our coworkers are weird, but I never would've stuck with this job if I thought it was... you know, unsafe in that department. And I wouldn't have brought you into that situation, either, if I thought that. You can at least believe me there, right?"

Xion took a deep breath and let it out. She was still on edge. "Of course I trust you," she told him. "I just don't trust  _him_. But if you say it's fine, then..." She took another deep breath, trying to relax. She rubbed her sore shoulders, nudging Roxas's hands off. "Just no more surprises like that, okay? I'm not tough like you. I can't handle this stuff in my life again."

Roxas bit his lip, probably wanting to protest, but instead he just nodded. "It's been a long day," he said. "Let's just go home and get some sleep. It'll be another long day tomorrow."

* * *

 

Back at the Market, it took another twenty-three minutes before the last of the shlubs went home. Axel had to practically drag Saix out the door, promising his roommate that work would still be there in the morning, but Saix himself would not if he robbed Axel of one more minute of beauty sleep during what he dubbed "hell weekend."

Xigbar laughed as he waved them off. Those two were always a delight.

"So, what time are we supposed to meet this guy?" he asked Xemnas, now that it was just the two of them. "Midnight again?"

"Indeed." Xemnas shut off the fluorescent lights, though he watched Axel and Saix through the window for a time before he began the process of completely locking up the store front.

Once the front gate was lowered, it was time to begin the long wait for one of their  _special_  deliveries. Xigbar helped himself to a beer from the store's display while they made their way to the back area.

"Saix will not like that," Xemnas told him, looking mildly amused as he always did.

"Saix doesn't like anything," Xigbar retorted cheerfully. "He'll live. Besides, what'll really grind his gears is finding out about the rom-com playing out in customer service. Why'd you authorize that, anyway?" He looked curiously at his old friend and business partner. He knew most of what Xemnas did was in service to some larger plan, but this?

Xemnas met his gaze levelly, still with that tiny smile. "Am I not permitted to have a little fun? Just imagine it: innocent charm pitted against wily experience, in competition for the affections of our two most perceptive and scheming colleagues... Why, I find the idea simply endearing."

Xigbar snorted. "Those two are the schemers, huh?"

"And when it inevitably gets out of hand, it should keep the boy occupied for a time," Xemnas added, as they made themselves comfortable in the back. "My father has informed me that this year will be busy for us. It will not do to have the boy poking around before he is ready."

"Busy, eh? That's what I like to hear." Xigbar put his feet up and cracked open his beer. "Here's to profitable times ahead."

"I shall tell him you approve," Xemnas said silkily. "He is always pleased to know that his friends are content."

"Oh, I bet he is," Xigbar chuckled darkly. He remembered the last time they had been promised 'business' by the old coot; it had cost him his day job.

Xigbar took a long drink while he waited for midnight. This was going to be a very interesting year, indeed.


	5. Awkward Arrangements

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ven spends the weekend with some new friends; Aqua spends it working; Isa has to find something to do that isn't work, and Terra works on his cover story.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HI EVERYONE IT'S BEEN A WHILE HASN'T IT HOW ARE YOU???
> 
> Ahem. Yes. Sorry about that. Between NaNoWriMo (I wrote a KH fic! ...which will be rewritten as an original story and probably never see the light of day in its original form!), juggling a few other fics (one of which I actually updated this month, huzzah!), and just general holiday business, I kinda let this one go for a while. This is also something of a transitional chapter, which are always rough for me, and it contains a bunch of characters who aren't the protagonists, and blahblahblah excuses. I'll get better, I swear!
> 
> I also have decided to get into the habit of like... being social... lol... so I'll be replying to reviews now! Like a person who appreciates them! Which I promise I am!
> 
> ...I'm really just wasting time here, aren't I? Yes. I should just let you get to the fic. Enjoy! And let me know what you think!

"Come on, men! Faster!"

Ven raced around the corner, just barely pulling ahead of the boy ahead of him in time to come to a halt in front of Peter. He had come in third, which he thought was pretty good considering that he had never actually raced anyone on a skateboard before.

Peter Pan, the cocky yet charismatic ringleader of his new group of friends, stood on a large fountain observing them all. Tink sat next to him, one foot still in a heavy ankle brace. The doctor had said to leave it on for another week, and no skating for a while. During her convalescence, she and Peter were determined to train the rest of them to skate like she did; when they were good enough, Peter promised some kind of excitement.

Today they were practicing in a city park in one of the outer boroughs. It was not as crowded as the main Fountain Park, or the downtown skate park, and they were unlikely to run into anyone who would recognize Peter and Tink-- from their last excitement, whatever that meant.

"So," Ven huffed, after he raced the other boys again and came in second, "are you ever gonna tell us what all this is for?"

"Yeah, what gives?" The winner of the race, a skinny boy they all called Slightly, sat on his board in protest. "You an' Tink are always off doin' somethin', and you never tell us nothin'!"

"Yeah!"

"That's because you're not ready yet," Peter informed them. "Tell you what, whoever comes in first gets a hint!"

Tink rolled her eyes.  _Or I can just tell you,_ she signed.

"Tink, you'll do no such thing! C'mon, Cubby, you can skate better than that!" Ven was not sure how Peter was able to watch the whole race, keep an eye on his friend's hand movements, and maintain that air of competent leadership all at the same time, but he envied the ability.

Tink sighed, blowing the air upward so her poofy bangs flew up and resettled over her face.  _So dramatic._

Ven privately agreed, though he did not want to say anything now for fear of insulting his new friends. Especially when they were as cool as Peter. The lot of them had said they welcomed him into the group (they called themselves "The Lost Boys" like they were some sort of kiddie gang), but he could tell they still thought of him as something of an outsider. The same way he could tell that his family still thought of him as a child, even though he would be twenty in less than two months.

Well, he might not convince his family anytime soon, but maybe he could prove himself a team player here. "The winner gets a hint, huh? What's to stop that person from telling the rest?"

"The honor system, of course!"

"I've got a better idea. Seeing as how we're all trying to do whatever fun thing you've got planned, we  _all_ have to skate fast, so how about we all go for the prize?"

Peter leaned forward and braced his elbow on his knee, much like a general hunkering down to talk to his men. "Alrighty, new kid, I'm listening."

"I say," Ven pronounced, as the last of their troupe rolled into place beside him, gasping and panting, "since we're all in this together, howzabout we all get tested together? Give us, I don't know, an obstacle course or something, and when everyone finishes within your time limit, everyone gets to know what we're training for."

"Hmm..." Peter stroked his chin. "What do you think, Tink?"

Tink pursed her lips, bouncing her bound ankle a little bit as she looked between Peter, Ven and the rest.  _How about a more practical challenge?_ she signed, a sly look on her face.  _Give them a taste of the real thing._

"Now  _there's_ an idea. Tink, you're a genius!"

_I know._

"Alright, men, catch some air while I plan a course. Then I'll chase you all through it, and if you can get to the end without getting caught, I'll let everyone in on the master plan."

"Aw, no fair, we can't race  _you,_ Peter!" one of the boys whined.

Ven, meanwhile, frowned at Tink.  _What exactly are we doing?_ he asked with his hands.

Tink only grinned back at him.  _Here's a hint for free,_ she responded,  _Have you ever heard of a guy called Robin Hood?_

As the son of a policeman, Ven of course knew the local legend. He was not sure he liked where this was going, but he  _did_ like his new friends. And he could always back out if things got weird, so what was the harm in listening? Maybe Dad wouldn't approve, but he was making friends and learning a new skill, so he had no right to complain. And it sure beat having a summer job.

* * *

 

Aqua's new commute was indeed very, very long.

After no less than three different subway lines, two of which were experiencing holiday weekend delays, Aqua's extra hour of travel time had only allowed her to arrive in the Depths with fifteen minutes to spare.

Clutching her purse tightly, she bounded up the subway stairs as fast as she could. The walls were covered in grime and graffiti, and the whole station smelled more strongly of urine and garbage than most did. Once she got outside, she saw why her father had expressed reservations about her working here; this was a far cry from the pristine city blocks where she had been interviewed.

The sidewalk seemed to crumble under her feet. Gone were the little trees that lined the streets in the main borough, and the bustling crowds. Here there were only a few pedestrians on each block, a tired-looking bunch who shambled along in ones and twos, either with children or pushing carts held together with duct tape and overflowing with big trash bags. Not a single building was untouched by weather, age, or some odd growth in the cracks of wood and concrete. Every few minutes she got a faint sniff of marijuana smoke, or heard the sound of illegal firecrackers in the distance.

Aqua hurried off toward the library, feeling especially uneasy when her route led her onto a more residential street. A couple of men stared at her. One of them made kissing noises as she passed, his eyes scanning her body twice over.

Aqua gritted her teeth and clutched her bag tighter over her chest. Next time she would keep her blazer on, heat be damned.

Finally she got to her destination, though she had to check her directions a couple times. _This_ was newly renovated?

The building in question was made of dirty brick. It had only one floor, a sloped roof and a small parking lot behind it, which held a very shiny Beetle and a couple of older cars that fit the neighborhood a little better. There were several dirty donation bins near the entrance, not just for old books. The front walkway was as worn-down as the sidewalk in front of it, and there were bars over the windows.

Aqua swallowed and resettled her purse on her shoulder. This was not at all the place she had dreamed of working at.

"You lost?"

Aqua jumped a little; she had not noticed the gruff and graying man standing next to her. "Maybe," she said. "I'm looking for the... sorry..." She sounded out the name carefully. "The Kashekim Nedakh Memorial Library? Local branch of the RGPL?"

The man looked at the building in front of them, then back down at Aqua, peering at her through small, round sunglasses. "Nice place, isn't it?"

"I... I thought it was just renovated."

"It was. You should have seen it a year ago when Hurricane Sin swept through and flooded the place. We lost more than half the stock that day and all the plumbing and floors had to be redone. We're still not finished re-shelving."

"Oh." She bit her lip. She did remember the news about that, but she also remembered hearing that the city would be focusing restoration efforts on more populated areas, and infrastructure that saw more use, like the subway system. Such was her dismay that she blurted out without thinking, "I can't believe the city paid for all that."

"They didn't." The man raised an eyebrow at her; his sunglasses fell down a notch, revealing that he only had one intact eye. "Luckily Belle's boyfriend has deep pockets and believes in the work, so we get to keep our jobs. Are you one of the trainees?"

"...Yes," she sighed. "I'm Aqua. Today's my first day at the circulation desk." She offered her hand, hoping she had not offended her new coworker.

His grim expression did not change as he gave her a brief, firm handshake. His left arm stayed tucked within his jacket front while his right was in its baggy sleeve, like he was some kind of samurai. "Auron," he grunted. "Security."

Well, at least he seemed like he would be good at it. Maybe he would walk her to the subway if she had to go home after dark.

"Well," Auron said, facing the building, "time to get to work."

Aqua followed him through the doors. Inside, at least, it looked much better: the carpets and furniture were all new, as were some of the shelves. All the tables and desks were freshly polished dark wood, and the cream-colored walls smelled very slightly of paint. The computers were older models, but had at least been well-cleaned and maybe refurbished. With light blue armchairs, navy floors, and a ceiling that was pale blue above the low-hanging light fixtures, Aqua was reminded of the beach.

Auron was watching her. "Any thoughts?" he asked.

"It's nice," she said, running a hand over the sleek desk. Yes, she could work here. It was like a little oasis of learning in this unfriendly part of the city. Many of the shelves were empty still, and there were piles of books here and there that still looked like they had significant water damage, but that would change. She could see how someone might believe in this place.

"Aqua!" The voice made her smile; Belle came to her from between the shelves, followed by a couple of young men who dwarfed her. "Welcome! These are the student workers, Phillip and Simba. And I see you've already met Auron." She smiled at him, and he gave her a polite nod.

"Nice to meet you." The students seemed nice enough. Phillip was tall and narrow, with a pretty face and a gentle sort of handshake; Simba was shorter and broader, with wild red hair and a sincere, sweet smile.

"I'll be training everyone," Belle went on. "We open at noon today, so you'll have a little time to ask questions." She turned to Auron, who had already settled in at his station. "Have you heard anything from Milo yet?"

"Late again," Auron said. "I can take him to task, if you'd like."

"No, no, it's fine." She sighed and smoothed her skirts. "Well, let's get to it!"

Half an hour later, as the three of them listened to Belle explain some finer points about their catalogs, a very harried-looking young man in coke bottle glasses burst through the door.

"S-sorry I'm late!" he huffed, scrambling behind the desk under Belle and Auron's stern gazes. Papers and books were spilling out of his arms and bag. "Oh, these are the new people? Hi! Milo Thatch!" He grabbed Aqua's hand first and shook it vigorously.

"You're lucky we open late today, Milo," Belle told him, frowning. "Otherwise we'd be busy by now."

"I know, I know, b-but the Corridors..." He gave an apologetic shrug. "Sorry!"

"Well, try to account for that next time," she said, and went back to training Aqua and the boys.

All too soon, it was time for opening. Aqua was stationed at the desk, since she already knew how this worked, even if she did not know the particulars of this library. Belle sat nearby, ready to answer questions, while Phillip and Simba followed Milo, who was flitting about the stacks with his cart, returning books to their proper places.

Patrons trickled in one at a time. Most of them had questions about the new layout, which Belle answered; Aqua was not properly tested until people wanted to check out or place things on hold.

Luckily, she seemed to do well. This was a job she had done for a few years now, and Belle was a very easygoing supervisor. She kept a careful eye on Aqua for a bit, and when she realized that Aqua was picking it right up she started going out into the stacks for a minute or so at a time, showing patrons around or checking on the boys. The whole place was only one large room, with a basement that was still closed, so she was never far.

Trouble did not happen until an hour or so after they opened to the public. Milo was at the desk now, absorbed in some kind of research while Phillip and Simba figured things out, and Belle kept an eye on them and the rest of the library. Aqua was manning the cart, getting used to the layout as she did so.

The door chimed softly as someone walked in. "Milo, you piece of shit," said a voice that nearly made Aqua drop a heavy stack of reference volumes, "you didn't tell me this place was open again!"

"I thought you knew!" came Milo's cheerful reply. "Don't you know everything around here?"

Aqua put down her burden and strode to the end of the shelving unit so she could see the reference desk. What the _hell!_ Again?!

Sure enough, there he was: Vanitas, _again_ , was setting a bag on the counter. From the way it _thunked_ on the wood, it must have been loaded with books. And from the way he smirked and leaned over to bump his fist against Milo's shoulder, this was not an uncommon occurance.

"Language, Van," Belle said, though she too greeted him warmly, as if he was some sort of old friend. That was about all Aqua could take. She stepped out from behind the shelves, her blood running cold. This was just unbelievable.

She had taken but two steps toward the desk when those sickening yellow eyes lighted on her, then glanced away, then looked back at her and widened, the color draining from Vanitas's face.

"The fuck are _you_ doing here?" he demanded, drawing stares from the other patrons and another reproach from Belle, which was promptly ignored.

"That's my line," Aqua shot back, automatically keeping her voice down. "How dare you follow me here--"

"Follow you? Oh, no. No, no, no." His mouth tightened with fury when he spotted her name tag. "Honey, this is _my_ neighborhood. I'll give you Phil's Gym, I'll give you every fucking park in the city, but you stay the hell away from my library. This is _my_ spot."

Auron appeared beside him, placing one large hand on Vanitas's shoulder. "Keep it down," he ordered, earning a filthy yellow glare.

Milo and Belle were staring at them, as were the other trainees and every patron within view. Aqua stepped closer, her face growing hot, and lowered her voice to a deadly whisper. "Listen here, you complete _scumbag_ ," she began, so angry that her hands shook. She barely resisted the urge to curl them into fists. "If you think for one second that I ever want to see your face again, you are even crazier than I thought. And you better believe my father will hear about this."

"Great," Vanitas practically growled, his bright eyes blazing. "Go on and tell him. Call Daddy right now, and see which one of us he drags home to safety." He gave her a very dangerous smile, and stepped closer so they were inches apart. "You Wayfinder shitbabies never change, do you?"

"That is _enough,_ " Auron said firmly, stepping between them to force Vanitas back. It was just as well, because Aqua might have slapped the smirk off that face otherwise, professional demeanor be damned.

"I take it you two know each other?" Belle asked faintly. "Van, I promise Aqua didn't follow you here. She didn't even sign up to work for this branch. Aqua... Vanitas has been coming here for years. Longer than any of us, actually."

Vanitas snorted in disbelief when Belle gave her defense of Aqua; at least Aqua was better than that, though she felt much the same way. Vanitas, at the library? Enough to make friends with the whole staff, who remembered him after a year away? This was getting absurd. She wondered what his game was.

Still, it was only her first day, her boss seemed to like him, and worst of all, she actually needed this job. It was not just a paycheck; it was the only way she could afford to get back in school.

For a time, both she and Vanitas said nothing, only staring each other down. It was he who finally broke the silence. "Whatever," he scoffed, turning away. "I'm only here to renew these." He unzipped his bag and began taking out books, not even looking in Aqua's direction anymore.

Aqua stepped back as well. She nodded to Belle, forcing as much of a smile onto her face as she could manage, then went back into the shelves. It was with a very great effort that she managed to focus on her work.

Vanitas left once he was done. But for the door chime, the clacking of Milo's keyboard, and the odd rustle of clothing or books sliding against each other, the place was eerily silent, even for a library. A few patrons were staring at Aqua. She paid them no mind, very carefully reading the labels on book spines and placing everything just so.

After a minute or two, Belle appeared next to her. "You'll need the ladder for that," she murmured softly, when Aqua squinted up at the call numbers of the books on a top shelf.

Belle had brought her a small step-ladder, which Aqua accepted with equally quiet thanks. She put the book where it belonged, stepped down and gave the ladder back, all without saying a word.

After a long pause, Belle said quietly, "Can we talk?"

Aqua clenched her jaw, but said politely, "Of course."

There was nowhere to go in this tiny library that would grant them privacy, so they had to step outside. Aqua followed her boss to a place just near the entrance, almost in the parking lot. Nearby there were trees that had snapped in half in the hurricane, and had not been cleaned up even after a year.

Belle clasped her hands together, much like Aqua did when she needed to gather herself. With a look of gentle concern, she said, "Can I ask what happened back there?"

Aqua bit her lip, her anger finally starting to give way to shame. Anyone could see that Vanitas was the one in the wrong, but she had not meant to make anyone uncomfortable.

"He and I have a nasty history," she said quietly. "I just moved back to the city and I wasn't expecting to run into him as much as I have. I'm sorry to make a scene."

"Nasty history?" Belle had that same understanding look that the girl at the gym had given her.

"Not like that," Aqua said before she could stop herself. "I would never be with a bully like him."

Now Belle looked confused. "Van, a bully?" She frowned at Aqua. "Sorry, I don't mean to deny what you've been through. It's just that Milo and I have known him for years. Sure, he might be a little rude, but he's no bully. He's harmless."

" _Harmless!_ " Aqua had to force her voice lower again, seething. "That miserable piece of _garbage_ tormented my baby brother for a _year_. He helped his evil _freak_ of a grandfather manipulate my other brother into--" Not many things could drive Aqua to this level of anger, but not many things could do so much wrong to the people she loved most in the world. She took a deep, shaky breath, trying to reign her temper in. "That... that _person_ has hurt my family more than you can possibly know," she said finally. "Belle, I'm sorry, but harmless is the last thing he is."

Belle was silent for a while after this pronouncement. Then she asked gently, "Do you want to work somewhere else?"

Aqua blinked. "What?"

"Aqua, I'm sorry, but I can't ban him with just that, and if I make trouble over this it'll reflect badly on both of us. I know it's unfair-- believe me, I know how terrible it is when a man is bothering you and no one helps-- but there's nothing I can do." She looked down, shamefaced. "Everyone knows my boyfriend bought me this job. If I make things hard or uncomfortable for my bosses, it'll be proof that I can't do it, and without me and my team the whole library might get shut down. No one else wants to commute here and it doesn't make any money, but this neighborhood needs it, and Vanitas is one of the people who helped us see that."

She swallowed hard after this little speech, and for the first time Aqua truly appreciated that Belle could not be much older than her, if at all. In fact, other than Auron, everyone in this place was apparently in college or freshly out.

The woman continued, more quietly, "I'm sorry. I don't mean to dump all this on you, I just want you to understand how things are. If you don't feel safe here, you can try to transfer, and I promise I'll give you the best recommendation I can. And until another position opens up, we can talk to Van and see if we can make sure he's not here when you are. Other than that..." She shrugged miserably. "I'm not sure there's much else I can do for you."

Aqua sighed. She was still a bit angry, but that was mostly overridden by a surge of sympathy for Belle; Aqua was intimitely familiar with the helplessness of being unable to protect someone in her care. Later she would worry about employee-boss appropriateness, but for now, she put a reassuring hand on Belle's shoulder.

"It's okay," she said, although it wasn't. "I know you're just doing your job. And I do want to work here, it's just..." She sighed again and shook her head. "I'm the one who's sorry. I know I got out of line back there. I don't want to make your life harder, but I just... I can't stand him."

Belle bit her lip. If she took issue with Aqua's forwardness, she said nothing of it. "What do you want to do?"

Aqua glanced toward the door. She had been so, so excited about this job. "I need some time to think," she said finally, more to herself than anything. "For now, let's just get back to work."

* * *

 

Saix did not get a moment to himself until late Sunday afternoon. He had spent the morning at the customer service desk with Axel, who had taken the first break only to hurry back early when the store was unexpectedly slammed with a second lunch rush. By the end of it, when Larxene reported in for the evening shift, Saix had acquired a dull throbbing behind his eyes, and he thought he might pass out if he did not get caffeine and food immediately.

"I am going out," he announced, handing over the small pager that received calls from the cashiers' stations. "I trust that you two can keep this place from burning to the ground for the next thirty minutes."

"We'll do our best," Axel promised. When he took the pager, he slipped something into Saix's hand. "Take the whole hour for once," he said with a wink. "You could use the break."

"Yeah, save some energy for chewing out Pinky," Larxene said darkly. "I can't believe he abandoned us on a holiday weekend."

"I will speak with him tomorrow," Saix promised, looking dubiously at his friend. Axel had given him a note of some sort, folded up into a tiny square.

Axel only grinned wickedly, and lucky for him the pager immediately began to beep. As one they all looked toward the registers: the cashier in distress was Xion. Axel dutifully went off to her aid, and Saix frowned after him. Honestly, had anyone before that girl needed so much hand-holding?

Larxene had noticed him looking. "How long do you think the brat's going to last?" she asked, not even bothering to keep her voice down.

Saix looked down his nose at her. His headache was only getting worse. "Unless she interferes with your own duties, that is none of your concern," he said coldly. "You know I don't tolerate gossip."

"Of course you don't." Her tone bordered on disrespectful, but at least she did not roll her eyes at him. "Well, have fun at lunch or dinner or whatever." A customer approached the desk, and Larxene's smile switched on automatically. She was all sweetness as she processed a return, only the tiniest tapping of her fingernails under the counter hinting at her foul mood.

Well, at least she was good for something. Pocketing Axel's note, Saix left Larxene to her work and went to the back to clock out for lunch, his stomach growling.

Things did not improve when his feet cramped up on the way to the coffee shop two blocks over, which was so dimly lit that the edges of his vision started to blur yellow. As he squinted at the credit card receipt and signed his name, he wondered if these contacts were more trouble than they were worth. He liked the effect they had on his face, and the effect they had on anyone he glared at even more, but it was rather insensible to have eyewear that made it _more_ difficult to see.

Unbidden, the words of a certain pizza boy floated into his mind. "Reminds me of spring," he had said. Isa had never been complimented on his real eyes before.

He shook himself to banish the thought. Obviously the long weekend was making him lightheaded. Coffee would help, as it always did.

Indeed he did feel better, once he sat down with his iced grande black-eye and a couple of snacks. His headache gradually subsided, and as he mentally listed all the things he had left to do in the back office, he realized he should be able to go home at a reasonable hour today. With that comforting thought, he settled down with his phone to actually enjoy his break for once.

After a few minutes, he remembered the note his friend had given him. He took it out now, unfolded and smoothed it out on the table, and frowned.

_Terra_ , it read, _the not-pizza man :)_

There was a phone number underneath.

Isa gritted his teeth and shoved the note back into his pocket. Honestly, was Lea simply trying to embarrass him? He had neither the time nor the energy for this sort of nonsense, which the idiot well knew.

By the time his break was over, his mood had soured once again. Cursing well-meaning friends with no sense of propriety, he eased himself back onto his aching feet, gathered up his things, and returned to the Market.

Office work would be a good distraction, he figured. The schedule for the next two weeks was already done, so he might as well get payroll out of the way, then get back to the accounting that he had not had time to get to the day before. Finishing the last of his coffee, he donned his apron and his Saix name tag once more, and got down to work.

If there was anything to be said in favor of holiday weekends, it was that they were profitable. Unfortunately, a good chunk of that money went towards overtime pay for about half their employees. Saix could see why Xemnas had been against such a thing, but if Saix was going to handle payroll now, he would do the thing properly, god damn it.

He had to look twice at one of the numbers; he was about ninety percent certain that Demyx had not worked a sixty-hour week. Frowning, he checked the time sheets, and felt a surge of anger when he saw that the idiot had apparently forgotten to clock out. Three days in a row.

He glanced at the clock. It was well past seven by this point, and the store was far too busy for him to take their only stockboy off the floor for a well-deserved verbal thrashing.

Instead Saix gritted his teeth and rubbed his forehead. He did not have time to pay one person separately from everyone else, and he did not want to do the math all over again, so he would have to put payroll on hold until he got Demyx's corrected hours. Which meant he would not be going home at a decent hour after all.

Sometimes he hated his job.

Out in the hallway, the door to the main area banged open. Saix sat up straighter as one of his many annoyances strode towards the office.

Fortunately, it was just Axel; unfortunately, he looked upset.

"What is the problem now?" Saix asked, exasperated. At least he could speak his mind when they were alone.

"The problem is I just got a look at that schedule you worked _oh_ so hard on. You have me and Roxas and the kiddo off on Tuesday?"

Saix raised his eyebrows. "Yes, and?"

"And are you asking me to pick one? Is this some kinda test?" Axel's frown deepened. "Or wait, are you actually working that day?"

"Of course I am working on Tuesday. I always do." He crossed his arms. "What?"

Axel stared at him incredulously. "Tuesday is the seventh," he said slowly, " _July_ seventh."

"...Oh." Well, that explained the fuss. It was the day Isa turned twenty-four.

"Did you seriously forget your own birthday?"

"No," he huffed. "I simply fail to see why you insist on making such a big production of it."

"Because that's what friends do." Axel put his hands on his hips. "And I'm not splitting up my day off between you and the munchkins when you both deserve my full attention, so the schedule's gotta be fixed."

"I am not altering it two days ahead of time," Saix told him, glowering. "You are being ridiculous."

"Just tell Marly to get his ass in here instead. He hasn't been pulling his weight all summer."

"'Marly,' as you call him, has another job. And I already said I would speak to him about this." Saix leaned forward on the desk, his jaw set. "The schedule stays as it is. You and I can do something next week, if you insist. Now get back out there and worry about who's pulling _your_ weight."

Axel stayed right where he was, staring at him. "I'm not letting you work all day and mope all night on your birthday, Isa."

"I do not mope!"

"Yes you do! And don't tell me you already have plans, because--"

"As a matter of fact I do," Isa snapped. That shut his friend up, at least. Even better, he was saved from having to elaborate when his pager beeped. "Go and see what that is," he ordered, picking up his pen. "I doubt they need me to wipe Xion's nose for her."

Axel looked as if he wanted to say something else, but for once he held his tongue. "Fine," he said, still frowning. "But we are doing something next week."

"Fine. Go." Saix waved him off, and waited until the outer door opened and closed again before sinking back into his seat.

Well, this was just lovely. Now he had to actually come up with something to do on Tuesday after work, since he could never lie to his friend without repercussions. He thought for a while-- Lea would not accept anything less than an elaborate outing, and who did they know who would be tolerable for that long? For that matter, who did they know who was remotely interested in talking to Isa for anything outside of work?

He frowned suddenly, a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He reached into his pocket and took out that crumpled-up note.

Surely there must be someone else, but he only had a few hours to solidify these plans before his roommate began grilling him. If there was a lull in the store, he had even less time.

With a frustrated sigh, he put Terra's number into his phone and sent out an introductory text, daring to hope that this might kill two birds with one stone. Lea had such odd ideas about what was good for Isa, from birthday parties no one asked for to romances and friendships that were doomed before they began. Perhaps he would let go of this stupid idea by the time it fizzled out into oblivion.

* * *

 

Terra did, on occasion, actually do the things he claimed to be doing all day. He wrote and sent out applications for "real" jobs before every shift of his under-the-table work-- sometimes he even thought he had a chance with them. And although he stayed away from more leg-related workouts, on his days off he did often go to the gym like he said.

Today was even better: not only was he exactly where he claimed he would be, not only was he catching up with his old high school friend just as he had promised, but he was actually enjoying himself. Despite all the odd changes that eight years had brought-- Terra now found himself struggling to keep up with the much taller and stronger Hercules, while in high school it had been entirely the reverse-- Herc was just as great a guy as he had always been.

By the end of their afternoon together, as they left the locker room and made their way to the parking lot, they were talking as if no time had passed at all. And when Hercules invited him to join his regular group of workout buddies, Terra found himself agreeing wholeheartedly.

"There's one thing, though," he made himself say, cringing inwardly at his own request. "I kind of have something else to schedule around, and I might need you to say we were hanging out when we weren't."

"Okay," Herc said, puzzled. "I mean, I can do that, but what am I covering for? Secret girlfriend? Never thought you'd be the type."

"It's nothing like _that_." Terra nearly squirmed. He definitely was not that type.

Fortunately, Hercules was more than willing to lend Terra a hand in lying to his family. All he asked was that it was for a good cause-- which it was, of course, though once Terra got halfway through the explanation he had to pause for his friend to finish laughing.

"It's not that funny," Terra muttered. "Can you just promise not to tell anyone?"

"'Course I won't," Herc chuckled, "but oh, man, the way you were acting, you made me think it was something serious."

"It is serious!"

"Alright, alright." Herc sighed, though he was still grinning. "Sorry, I just forgot that it's you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Terra demanded.

"It means your dark secrets are everyone else's mild embarrassments. But I'll keep quiet if it's really important to you."

Luckily Herc was wiping his eyes and did not see Terra wince. With any luck, Herc would never know about his real dark secrets. Or suspect that they even existed. Nor would anyone.

"Well, anyway, just promise that we really will hang out, okay? I missed you, man."

"I missed you too," Terra said, meaning it. "And hey, I really appreciate what you're doing for me. If there's any way I can make it up to you..."

"Get some more guys for the gym group?" Herc shrugged. "We do martial arts on Tuesdays, and I'm getting a little tired of sparring with the same couple of guys. This week is judo, right up your alley."

"Well, I could always invite my sister, or our father if he's free, but I get the feeling you want these guys to survive to the next practice."

Terra did not know if Aqua would actually agree to meet up more than once or twice; not only were Hercules and his friends now far out of her weight class for any sort of sparring, but she preferred to do her exercise regimen alone these days. In any case, though, Terra promised to ask. Aqua had, after all, been part of the same friend group back in high school.

They shook on it and parted ways, Hercules off to meet up with his wrestling coach while Terra took the Corridors home for once. He hoped he would be able to get a seat on the train; his legs were still a bit sore.

He was halfway down the stairs when his phone buzzed. Thinking it might be his family asking him to get something while he was out, he slowed down to check.

It was an area code he did not recognize. That was odd. Frowning, he stopped on the stairs, nearly dropping his phone when he was jostled by other commuters hurrying down past him. He had to apologize several times before he could properly read the text. When he did, he felt like he just skipped a step.

_This is Isa from 5D. Are you free on Tuesday?_

Grinning at this divine gift of opportunity, Terra scooted off toward the edge of the stair landing so he was out of the way, then typed out his response.

_I have a thing that day but your welcome to join! Some friends and I are doing marital arts and we need more people if that you're thing_

He pressed the send button too quickly, read over the message, and cringed at all the autocorrect errors.

_That's martial arts, sry_ , he sent next, and for good measure followed it with, _Nobodies getting married haha :)_

_I assumed._ A minute later, _It is not my "thing," exactly, but perhaps it could be; I've never tried. And I have no gear or training. Would you mind if I just watched?_

_I'll ask the host but I'm sure it's fine._ This time Terra double-checked his message for misspellings, since Isa seemed the type who would notice. Who used semicolons in their text messages, anyway?

_Good. When and where are we meeting?_

It occurred to Terra that he probably should have started with that detail. _Practice is in the evening, I can pick you up around 4:30 and maybe we can grab a late dinner after?_

About half a mile away, in the back office of Market XIII, Isa frowned at his phone. He had not meant to turn this into a date, but it was too late to back out now. Besides, it was probably better if he was out of the house for longer, anyway.

_Sounds like a plan_ , he made himself respond. _You know where I live._

_Haha yeah I'll see you there! :)_

Back at the subway, Terra was giddy as he hurried down the stairs again. His head was buzzing with ideas as he waited for the train: he might have to battle Aqua for the car, of course, but as far as he knew she had no plans; he would have to clean the car, since it smelled faintly of gym socks and was hardly presentable for a guest; and he would have to figure out somewhere nice to go for dinner. Terra would pay, of course. He rarely got the chance to treat people. Or make new friends. Especially not anyone as cool as Isa.

He just hoped the whole thing would not be too awkward.


	6. Poorly Socialized Pretty Boys

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Texts between two friends, two friendly outings with a ton of missed subtext, and our daring heroes attempt romance for the first time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lmao is anyone still here??? Sorry again for the long absence, some stuff came up like me switching jobs and updating another fic first. Also, a good chunk of this had to be completely re-written, so there's a very long deleted scene that I may or may not share on tumblr or something. But there's a big reveal in there that I decided to hold off for a chapter or several, so it might be a little while. Hopefully it won't take months again tho, lol.
> 
> OH AND IS ANYONE GONNA BE AT ANIME EXPO? I'll be there as canon!Xemnas, carrying an actual Kingdom Hearts and distributing chocolate hearts, and on another day I'll be retail!Saix from this very fanfic. Say hi to me there! Say hi to me on tumblr! Say hi in the comments, or on my other fics! And please enjoy this!

_[10:04] nyeh squidward_

_[10:11] nyeh squidward_

_[10:18] isa u asshole answer my texts. i know its not busy_

_[10:27] nyeh squidward_

Lea did not actually expect his friend to respond, but he was terribly bored and Isa was fun to annoy. And there was not much else to do; some kind of construction outside their apartment (for there was _always_ construction in this damn city) had woken Lea up shortly after his roommate left for work this morning, and since he could not get back to sleep and he was not set to meet Roxas and Xion until noon, he had dragged himself out the door early. Now he was stuck in some sandwich place for another hour and a half, cursing himself for not charging his 3DS ahead of time.

Miraculously, though, Isa did eventually get back to him.

_Time for my break. Finally I am able to check my phone, which I have naturally set aside during work hours. I never realized I could get spam mail via text message-- truly fascinating._

Lea rolled his eyes, smirking. As always, Isa could be pretty verbose for a guy who wasn't in the mood to talk. _u realize ur the only person there who doesnt check his phone on the job right?_

_I am aware that I am frequently disobeyed on that front. And on many others._

_may b time to give up that fight lol_

_I never give up. I have to set a good example._

At that Lea snorted loud enough for some other patrons to look over. _LOL is zexion there or smthg? bc the kiddos r meeting me in 20ish mins & legit everyone else is older than u. p sure they dont look to u for guidance_

_Some people, such as yourself, are mentally much younger._

_wow ok then grandpa_

_I thought I was Squidward._

_ur many things 2 me bro_

_Right. Well, today I'm the person who signs your paychecks, which I should get back to. I'll see you later._

_wait no dont leave me im so bored_

_Get off my lawn._

Lea sighed and leaned back, checking the time and frowning. That had only wasted about ten minutes. Why had he agreed to hang out while the sun was still up, anyway? Usually on his days off he liked to be in bed until one in the afternoon, at the absolute earliest.

He sipped at the remains of his soda and grimaced; it was mostly ice and sugary water at this point. He contemplated texting someone else, but he wasn't much in the mood for anyone else.

He dug in his vest pocket for his headphones, resigning himself to just music for the next quarter-hour. As much as Lea was always bothering Isa to get out of the house and make friends, his own socializing never really extended beyond going to bars with the same couple of coworkers or college buddies and getting wasted a couple times a month. He was not truly close to anyone besides Isa, and if he was honest, he was not sure if he wanted to be.

Gone were the days when he lived in a college dorm and was surrounded by people of similar age and life circumstances; now he actually had to put effort into knowing people. And he maybe-kinda-really did not want to put in that effort.

Because even though on the surface Lea was as friendly as Isa was aloof, deep down he was just as much of a cynical, judgmental, emotionally stunted asshole. And he was disturbingly okay with that.

He scrolled through his music until he found something he was in the mood for. He sent off one more obnoxious text to Isa, then a nicer one to Roxas saying where to find him in the sandwich shop. Resettling himself in his chair, he mouthed the words to some nonsense dance song and fiddled with his phone, content to waste another day of his life.

* * *

 

Roxas had to force himself to take deep breaths while he checked Google Maps; Axel was about three blocks away.

Xion was grinning at him again. "Stop that," he muttered. She bit her lip and he immediately felt like a jerk. "Don't let me make too much of a fool of myself, okay?" he tried again. "I don't really know what I'm doing here."

Xion shrugged. "Well, I've never been a wingwoman before, but I'll do my best."

Roxas groaned. That stupid bet kept him up at night, and it did not look like the problem was going away anytime soon. Just yesterday, when he had run into Larxene in the break room where the schedule was posted, she had waggled her eyebrows at him in a manner that seemed almost obscene and told him to enjoy his day off. Even Luxord had wished him good luck after he clocked out. So it seemed no one had forgotten.

Well, whatever. He just hoped he and Xion would get a new friend out of it, and maybe she would forgive him when Larxene inevitably won the game that he had never signed up to play.

All too soon they arrived, and quickly spotted Axel's vivid red hair through the glass front of a corner shop. Xion, damn her, pushed the door open immediately and waved to him. Axel spotted her, grinned, and popped out his earbuds as he got up to greet them.

Casually-dressed Axel was Roxas's worst nightmare: distressed skinny jeans and boots that showed off his legs, a clingy shirt that did even worse for his narrow waist, a well-fitted black pleather vest and a hipster scarf that was just dorky enough to make him look cute and approachable without detracting from overall sex appeal. Worst of all, the man apparently made his eyeliner just a little more dramatic when he was out, drawing attention to those bright green eyes, and the way they lit up when he smiled--

"So, where did you crazy kids want to go first?"

 _Kids._ God damn it.

Luckily Xion was a better wingwoman than she gave herself credit for. "How about Fountain Park?" she asked, before anyone had a chance to notice Roxas getting all hot and bothered. "I've always wanted to see that."

"What, you haven't yet?" Axel shrugged. "I guess it's pretty cool, if you're into nature or whatever. And it's big. We could spend a whole day and not even see all of it."

"Yeah, let's do that," Roxas said quickly. He tried not to stare as Axel led them out of the shop and towards the park. Judging by Xion's encouraging smile, he was failing miserably.

Why had he ever thought this would be a good idea?

* * *

 

At precisely 4:28, the door buzzed.

Isa glared at it. All afternoon, anxiety had been winding up in his chest like a ball of yarn, to the point where he might have begged for a reason to cancel. But whenever he thought he could overcome his own disgust towards flaky people, he had only to think of his pride, and the teasing of a lifetime that awaited him once Lea learned of his cowardice.

In any case, though, it was all moot now. Isa pressed the intercom and greeted Terra, trying not to sound too angry when he said he was coming down. He checked twice for his phone, wallet and keys before heading out, insisting to himself that it was not just to put this off for another thirty seconds. And he most certainly was not obsessively adjusting his hair on the way down.

Terra waited for him on the sidewalk, hands in his pockets. It was... quite interesting... to see the man without a reflector vest and helmet hair. Instead he wore loose white pants and a light, open sweatshirt over a nearly skin-tight workout tee, which did such a fine job of showing off his sculpted torso that Isa began to wonder whether he was expected to comment on it.

"Hey," Terra said cheerfully. "Ready to go?"

Either he was completely oblivious or he had an excellent poker face. Well, Isa decided, two could play that game.

"Of course. Where are we headed?"

"About fifteen minutes away, in this traffic. Good thing you're in the east quarter, huh?" Terra led him to a car two spaces away: it was an old station wagon, very worn but decently cared for. Terra actually opened the door for him first, though again without a hint of flirtation.

Inside, a faint smell of pine air freshener just barely masked the smell of a recent vacuuming, mixed with a trace of gym socks. In the back seat was a large sports bag currently in use, plus another two empty on the floor. Each cup holder had a water bottle.

Terra got in the driver's seat and started the car-- it took a few tries and, judging by the way he bit his lip, a few prayers.

"What?" Terra asked after a moment. "Did I do something funny?"

Isa shook his head. "I think I rode in this exact car for about half my childhood."

"Oh. Yeah, it's old." Terra sounded a little sheepish as he pulled out into the street. "It's the family car. We don't really need it that often, so..."

"I didn't mean the age, I meant everything else. Right down to this." Isa touched the tacky air freshener dangling from the rear-view mirror. "My parents had the same brand, even the same flavor. It never truly covers the smell of used sports equipment, does it?"

"No, not really," Terra chuckled. "What do you play?"

"Ice hockey and lacrosse when I was a teenager. Nothing since then." Ice hockey was one of the few things Isa had liked about middle and high school. Sometimes he still missed it, but not enough to search for a new team, and quitting was inevitable anyway. Shaking off those thoughts, he asked, "What about you?"

"A bunch of stuff, really. Soccer and football in school. My sister and I were really into martial arts as kids-- karate, then judo. I tried wrestling for a month or two, and gymnastics with my brother. But lately it's just been the gym once or twice a week." Terra shrugged. "And my bike, of course. It's harder to keep up with something once you finish school, you know?"

"True." Isa rested his elbow on the car door. They were heading further out, hardly to the type of neighborhood where one might take a first date. He noticed that Terra was not using any type of map or directions, though Isa still did after nearly seven years in this metropolis. "So, have you always lived in Radiant Garden?"

"Most of my life, yeah. I grew up about half an hour outside the city, since my dad wanted to raise us in a house. We moved away for a while after high school, then we moved back this spring. How about you?"

"I was born and raised in suburban hell," Isa said, with the appropriate mild disgust. "I moved here for my undergrad, met Lea, and we've been getting on each other's last nerve ever since."

That got another laugh out of Terra. He did not seem bothered by Isa's dry deadpan, which was... well, he was not sure whether he should be comforted by that. He was perfectly aware of how he came across, and he had grown used to people either matching his tone or expressing their discomfort by this point. Polite interest did not usually last so long-- if Terra was this desperate for action, Isa thought with distaste, he could simply ask. He was good-looking enough that he didn't need to lay on the falsely innocent charm.

They exchanged small talk for a bit longer. Terra lived with his family and had not gone to college, which he seemed embarrassed to admit-- a sentiment Isa was more than familiar with, even if he no longer agreed with it.

"Well, you could be like me," Isa said, and told him point-blank what his student loans were. Terra whistled softly at the number. "And now I work in a grocery store with thirteen other people, barely earning more per hour than our resident teenager, while my oh-so-prestigious degree collects dust. Such is life in the twenty-first century."

"I guess so," Terra sighed. "Oh, here we are!"

He pulled into a small lot, spotted with recently-filled potholes. The neighborhood was one of those mid-gentrification outer districts that Isa and Lea had almost moved into before settling for their downtown shoebox; massive brick projects stood alongside newer apartments with balconies, with new businesses cropping up only on the main streets.

The place they arrived at was one such business: Phil's Dojo, according to the sign. As they climbed out of the car and Terra collected his bag, a moped grumbled into the parking lot. Its rider looked rather comical with both a gym bag and one of those standard Chocobo Delivery carriers; both were nearly the size of the man's torso. He brought them inside, and Isa suddenly felt a little odd that he was not carrying anything himself.

At the door they were greeted by... well. He looked like some sort of ancient Greek statue come to life, all rippling muscles and strong features and wavy hair falling _just_ so. Terra addressed him as "Herc," and Isa had to clench his jaw very tight to keep his snark contained.

"This is Isa, the guy I told you about. Isa, this is Hercules-- we went to high school together."

"Pleasure to meet you!" Hercules shook his hand firmly. He was at least a head taller than Isa, possibly approaching seven feet. "Terra, I'll show you where to set your stuff. You remember Zack Fair, right?"

"Of course I do! Is he here?"

"Nah, he's out of town for a while. But Cloud over there is his friend-- hey, Cloud!"

The moped rider looked over and nodded curtly. He was halfway through stowing his things in a cubbyhole near the lobby; he shrugged out of his jacket to reveal a physique to rival Terra's. Those biceps alone looked able to snap someone in half.

"He's a little shy," Herc muttered to Terra, as Cloud vanished into the bathroom to change. "He'll warm up soon enough. Zack says so, anyway."

"Yeah? What's he up to these days?"

Isa let the two of them chatter while he looked around. The dojo was a very basic setup, with a front lobby area, a middle section that included cubbies for coats and bags, a door to a large unisex bathroom, and the gym area in the back. There were no locker rooms; Isa supposed the place was too small, and judging by Terra's and Herc's matching white pants, most patrons arrived without needing to change.

Decorating the walls were pictures of varying age; Isa looked closer at the descriptions and found that they were all athletes formerly trained by the Phil that the dojo was named after. A couple of them were of Hercules himself, though he looked slightly younger and significantly less beefy. In one of them, he was holding up a medal.

"Regional championships for mixed martial arts, five years ago." The present-day Hercules, evidently having noticed Isa's interest, pointed to himself in the picture, then to a small hairy man standing next to him. "That's Phil-- my trainer. He thinks I've got a chance at the Olympics."

"Wow," Terra said, leaning in to get a better look. "Bet you're excited about that, huh?"

Hercules chuckled. "You know, a couple years ago, it was all I dreamed about. But now?" He shrugged. "Life happened, I guess. I might have other plans."

Terra frowned at that; he seemed about to ask about it when the front door banged open again.

"Who's ready to hit the mats?" Two men entered: both almost as large as Hercules, both sporting long black hair, massive cleft chins, and an absurd strut.

"You won't be so excited once I have you on your back," boasted the second man, in a deep baritone voice that did not seem to have an indoor setting. "Well now, who's this? Fresh meat?"

"Terra, Isa," Hercules said, pointing at them each in turn, "Kronk, Gaston. Guys, Terra's the friend I told you about."

"Aren't those women's names?" Gaston asked rudely, not even looking at them for an answer as he strode to the cubbies. Claiming two for himself, he began to shed clothing right there in the hallway.

Isa raised an eyebrow. Was this man real? "My name is a variant of Joshua," he explained to Gaston's exposed back. "Other versions include Yeshua, Josue, and Jesus."

"My... my family just has a theme going," Terra said awkwardly. "My sister is Aqua and my brother is Ventus."

Kronk, meanwhile, was looking him over with interest. "So, Terra. Terra from high school. Terra the high school judo champion. You here to teach us how to beat Herc?"

"I'll believe it when I see it," Gaston declared. He shed his pants and flexed his muscles, not very subtly comparing his physique to Terra's. Isa half expected him to whip out his genitals and a measuring tape. "How about you and I have the first round, kid?"

"I might have talked you up a little," Hercules admitted to Terra, who frowned.

"Well, I'll do my best, but I can't promise I'll live up to the hype." He shuffled over to a spot away from the others. He had the least changing to do-- a regrettable fact, in Isa's opinion-- only removing his shoes, socks and jacket, and putting on one of those robe-like things in its place. The belt he tied around his waist was a faded and well-worn brown; Isa wondered if the man was being overly humble about his skills. Judging by the looks the others had, they were wondering the same.

"I'm sure you're fine," Hercules told him. "And now Cloud has someone closer to his weight class. Right, Cloud?"

Cloud, having emerged from the bathroom, was busy moving Gaston's discarded pants from where they had landed on one of his bags.

"Variety's good," he muttered, lifting them up by a corner with his toes.

But evidently this was as much variety as they were going to get today; soon they were filing into the gym area. Isa had to reassure Terra twice that he was perfectly comfortable sitting on the floor against the wall, his shoes placed in their own little cubby, his phone in his lap, while the rest of the men did warm-up exercises and stretches. He watched Terra in particular bend over to touch his toes-- he quite enjoyed the view as those white pants were pulled taut-- and easily kept an expression of mild interest as they all discussed what they would practice today, and Kronk and Hercules dragged out large, rectangular cushions.

Isa had known, vaguely, that judo was a way of fighting which focused less on kicks and punches than on using an opponent's weight against them. But that knowledge did not at all prepare him for this display.

Furtively he opened his texts.

 _Lea,_ he typed, unable to contain himself any longer, _you are not going to believe what my evening has become._

The reply came almost immediately. Isa wondered if he was bored with his companions already.

_mmkay try me_

_I have been taken to a den of beefy gym rats, some of whom were very eager to disrobe and compare bodies, and all of them are now lining up to give each other tight hugs and then fall backwards onto a cushion._

Lea's second reply took a moment longer.

_wut_

Isa looked up as it was Terra's turn in line: in a very businesslike manner, he took hold of Cloud's lapel, drew him in close, kicked his leg out and threw him over it onto the mat. Cloud landed on his back, slapping the mat as he did so. Terra himself was thrown by Kronk next, and so on. Isa supposed they all looked like they knew what they were doing; he had no idea if one man was more skilled than the next, though Gaston seemed to grab his opponent a little harder than necessary.

_Apparently the exhibitionist likes it rough._

That was enough to startle Lea into something more elaborate.

_omfg dude where tf r u_

_Uptown in the east quarter, in a very sweaty two-room building._ Isa watched them switch to another throw; this one required grabbing the arm, spinning around, and lifting the target up before throwing him over one shoulder.

 _Now they're giving piggyback rides,_ Isa reported.

_ok isa i am going to need deets stat. r u being safe? is there enough condoms & lube? who r these men??_

Isa covered his phone screen with one hand and looked up again, biting his tongue. He would not laugh. He would _not_ laugh.

 _Sadly we haven't gotten to the condom stage yet. But Terra's taken me to some kind of martial arts gathering and it's a wonderful display._ He paused again to look up; Terra and Cloud seemed to have the easiest time with this throw, as it worked well against a taller opponent.

 _You know,_ Isa told Lea, _I think I might want to take up judo. Want to join me?_

_omfg u horndog i cant believe u_

"Want to give it a shot?"

Isa blinked and looked up: Terra was offering him a hand. "They want to pair off for foot sweeps next and we've got an odd number."

Isa had not intended to embarrass himself in front of a squad of beefcakes today, but he supposed that if he refused now he might not get another invitation to put his hands on this man tonight.

"You'll have to take your socks off first," Terra told him, smiling.

That done, Isa let himself be directed toward one end of the gym, while the other four went up and down the mats, essentially skipping sideways, with one party trying to trip the other when he moved his back foot.

"Now," Terra said, positioning him in front of the big cushion, "the great thing about judo is, you don't have to be a black-belt for it to be useful. I can teach you a throw right now and you could use it tomorrow if you need it."

Isa raised an eyebrow. "That simple, is it?"

"Well, the whole thing is about getting your opponent off balance, so there's a lot of small pushes and pulls, and... here, I'll show you." He raised his hands, one near Isa's left shoulder, the other at his right elbow, but paused before actually touching him. "May I?"

Isa nodded. What a gentleman.

Terra's hands were warm and solid, making Isa's skin tingle pleasantly under their weight. Maybe this had been a bad idea, he thought, before forcing himself to pay attention to what Terra was saying.

"This is just a simple hip throw, and it's the one most people learn first. You have your opponent in the basic hold-- sleeve and lapel, or shoulder in this case. And then you take a step, pull them with you--" He stepped to Isa's right, and drew him in close as he had done with the others. Isa had to focus very hard on the instructions as he was gently clasped to Terra's chest, lingering there much longer than anyone had when the throw was being done at normal speed.

"See how all your weight is on this foot?" Terra asked from just above his ear. "And feel my hip there?" Oh, Isa felt it. "Now all I have to do is sweep that leg out, and..." Very gently he swung his leg back, twisting and tugging Isa further to the right, so that his top half went where his legs could not.

In an effort to soften the impact, Terra pulled back from the throw at the last moment and kept his hands where they were; Isa landed in a sitting position on the mat, not at all the dramatic fall that the others had done. Terra smiled, and his thumb brushed the back of Isa's neck, just past his shirt collar.

"And, ah, there you go," Terra finished awkwardly, pulling his hand away as if burned. "I'm not the best teacher, but did that make any sense?"

"I think so." Isa was grateful for his years in customer service; no matter how flustered he got, his outer composure did not falter. "May I try?"

"Yeah, of course..." Terra helped him up, then took up the position in front of the mat. Isa put his hands vaguely where Terra had, and Terra adjusted his grip. "Seam and lapel," he directed, seemingly unaware of the effect of those hands over Isa's. "Lapel should be in your dominant hand."

Isa nodded, gripped tightly, and tried taking the step to the left, tugging Terra with him. The leg sweep was a lot harder than it looked with Terra's bulk in the way, but he thought he could see how it was meant to work. He just had to see Terra's body as a large object he wanted to tip over, and not as something he would perhaps like to put his mouth on.

 _Keep it together,_ he ordered himself. Pull the top half one way, use own hip to block the bottom half, pull further. He did so carefully, getting used to the positions. Terra wobbled a little. Isa grit his teeth and put a little more force into the movement, and Terra went down, albeit slowly and awkwardly. At least Isa did not fall over on him, though it was a near thing.

Isa frowned-- he really was getting out of shape, if he felt the exertion from that small thing-- but Terra did not seem to notice. "Not bad," he said encouragingly. "Just try to get it all in one smooth motion. Judo is all about balance."

A couple of the others clapped, making the both of them look up. Apparently they had gathered an audience.

"Step a little further," Hercules suggested.

"And don't forget to twist at the end," Kronk added. Gaston just looked amused, but Cloud was the most helpful, demonstrating the move on an imaginary opponent.

Isa glanced at Terra, who smiled. "Go for it," he said, getting up and adjusting his robe. "You won't break me or anything."

Isa stepped back, reluctantly taking hold of Terra's lapel again. He felt like he was giving a presentation he had not prepared for. He was not even dressed for this.

"Don't be so dainty about it," Gaston said condescendingly. "Grip him like a man, none of this limp-wristed nonsense."

Isa was sorely tempted to ask Gaston if he had any pointers on how men should grip each other. Cloud caught his eye, however, and gave the tiniest shake of his head. He demonstrated the move again, slowly.

Isa took a breath and returned his attention to what he was doing. Ignoring the other men, he tightened his grip on Terra's lapel. Imagining for a moment that he was on the ice again, he thrust his weight to the left, yanking Terra with him. He swept his right leg back and twisted hard, and Terra went down. He landed with a satisfying smack.

Isa stayed where he was for half a beat, balanced on one foot while he assessed his work. Terra stared up at him, wide-eyed.

"Was that man enough for you?" Isa asked, smiling.

The others all had a good laugh, but Terra blinked a couple times before grinning back at him, like he had to come out of a daze. "That was amazing," he said, a little breathless. "That was really your first try?"

"It was my second," Isa reminded him, straightening up. "My first was a minute ago." Belatedly he thought to offer Terra a hand up, but he was already standing on his own. Oh, well; from the way Terra was looking at him, there would be other opportunities after all.

The others seemed to agree that he'd done well: they were clapping again, save for Gaston, who just looked annoyed.

"Are we done slobbering over the new guy?" he asked them all. "It's just one move, anyone could do it."

Terra looked about to protest, but Isa stopped him. He'd had enough of being the center of attention anyway. "You can slobber over me later," he conceded. "I'll let you boys get back to your practice." He nodded to Terra and made his way back to the corner he'd been sitting in, flicking his hair over his shoulder as he went.

His next few texts to Lea were supremely smug. Tonight, he thought, was going much better than expected.

* * *

 

Xion might not be an expert in these things by any means, but she thought surely Roxas should have made some kind of move by now.

The three of them had been walking around the park all afternoon, just chatting and getting to know each other, and she could think of several instances when something flirtatious might have been said. Now it getting to the dinner hour, she was sweaty and cranky and hungry from having to subsist off of churros and ice cream all day, and still no progress had been made. When they finally decided to get dinner at some park cafe, she tugged Roxas away to get a table while Axel waited for their food and drinks.

"At least let him know you're available," she hissed, once they were out of earshot. "It's been hours already!"

"It's the first day," Roxas grumbled. " _You_ ask him, if you're so invested."

"I'm not supposed to interfere!"

"I can't believe you're taking this stupid thing seriously," he shot back. "It's so ridiculous, none of us needs this drama. Just leave it alone, okay?"

Xion flinched a little-- she hadn't meant to annoy him-- but before she could respond, Axel was joining them.

"Burgers should take another couple minutes," he sighed, dragging a chair over so he sat opposite them both. "But here's drinks!" He gave them the soda and juice they had ordered, then set out three plastic water cups and casually distributed his beer between them. "Cheers," he said, raising his cup with a smirk.

Roxas grinned and accepted his, but Xion hesitated. Her grandparents had never let her try alcohol before; they did not even keep it in the house, as far as she knew.

"Best drink that or toss it before the waiter comes," Axel suggested, already refilling his own cup. "No offense, but you kinda look your age, kiddo."

Xion lifted her cup, held her breath, and took a tentative sip. Immediately she coughed and nearly spit the stuff out; it tasted like someone had turned sourdough bread into a fizzy drink, then added extra bitterness. She pushed her cup away, while Roxas and Axel had a good laugh at her expense.

"Sorry, I should've asked first," Axel chuckled. "You don't get out much, do you?"

Xion just frowned at the table as she sipped her orange juice. Of course she didn't get out much; who would want to take her out? She had never had a date, or even any close friends, and even now she was only out because she was giving her brother some help with his romantic life. Help he didn't want. In fact she was probably just making it worse, and he probably didn't even want her there, and neither did Axel, they were just being nice... Xion bit the inside of her cheek in an effort to keep from crying.

Oblivious to her sudden misery, Axel checked his phone, while Roxas finished both Xion's beer and his own. Axel risked giving him a little more before they threw the cups away, just in time before their fries arrived.

Xion only picked at them, her appetite spoiled by the sudden onset of a shame spiral. Why had she ever wanted to go out? She knew how these things always ended.

Axel's phone buzzed on the table. He glanced at it, still smiling from something Roxas was saying. "So Xion got the fur coat lady, huh?" he chuckled, grabbing a fry with one hand and texting with the other. "Nah, she's alright if you know how to deal with her. The weirdest customer I ever got..." He trailed off, frowning at his phone.

Roxas nudged the fries toward Xion, waiting for Axel to finish.

After an awkward silence Axel shook himself, swiped something on his phone and covered the screen with a hand. "Sorry, what was I saying?"

"The weirdest customer you ever got?" Roxas prompted him, frowning.

"Oh yeah, this guy! He comes in a couple times a month at strange hours, you'll know him from the long white hair and leather everything. Anyway, the first time I see him, he's got no shirt, so we kick him out. He gets all huffy but he leaves, then he comes back five minutes later with-- I swear to god-- he just has two belts wrapped around himself to cover his nipples, and an open jacket over that. Seriously," he added, to Roxas's disbelieving laughter. Even Xion was giggling a little.

Axel continued, "Then this weirdo walks around for thirty minutes just to buy a bag of enriched soil and five dozen eggs, and the whole time I'm ringing him up he's lecturing me on global warming and the sins of modern man. I swear this is true," he insisted. "You'll see him if you work there long enough. Meeting Beltnipples is like a rite of passage."

Roxas followed up with his own story, recounting the tale of two young ladies who had come in fifteen minutes before closing, argued over every last thing in their cart only to purchase a single item from the deli, and left a mess of disordered shelves in their wake. Demyx had even caught them throwing boxes of cookies at each other, though they seemed to be completely sober adults.

Xion did not have any stories yet, but she was contented to listen to the other two talk. Her appetite soon returned, and she began to think the evening could be saved after all.

While they were eating, Axel checked his phone again, narrowed his eyes at it, and began typing. "Sorry," he muttered, "someone's bullshitting me."

Roxas and Xion glanced at each other, but said nothing. Xion personally would not dare to check her phone at the table, but she knew she was not a normal kid. Maybe Axel wasn't being all that rude, and she was just uptight.

Conversation resumed somewhat, but Axel kept an eye on the device. Whenever it buzzed he answered immediately, and Roxas's jaw tightened just a little bit more.

"So," Roxas asked, when they were almost done with the meal, "was there anything else you wanted to show us today?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah." Axel was still frowning at his phone, not really listening. "Sorry. Hey, you remember that Terra guy from last week?"

Roxas nodded slowly. "Terra Wayfinder," he explained for Xion's benefit. When she still looked at him blankly, he added, "Ven's family, remember?"

"Family?" Now Axel looked interested. "Does Terra have a brother, by chance? A cute one?" He chuckled, but Xion suspected it was not entirely a joke.

Well, here was an opportunity. Before she could reason herself out of it she blurted, "Do you think Roxas is cute?"

Finally they had Axel's full attention. "Pardon?"

Xion could feel her brother's horrified gaze on her. She swallowed and explained quickly, "V-Ven and Roxas are identical twins. So, you know, if you wanted to know what Terra's brother looks like... Roxas is... yeah."

Inwardly she cursed herself. There she went, making everything worse again. Why was she like this?

"Wait, so this guy is your twin's brother, but not either of yours?" Now it was Axel's turn to look confused. "How many siblings do you have?"

Roxas sighed, then held up a hand to count. "There's five of us total. We all grew up separately. Vanitas-- he'd be about twenty-five now, stayed with our dad's side so we don't see him much. Sora-- twenty-two, grew up mostly in a home Traverse Town, I think he's got some friends he considers extended family. Ven-- my twin, Ventus-- we're almost twenty, I have an adoptive mom and he has a dad, plus two more siblings there. And Xion's with our maternal grandparents."

Axel nodded, though Xion was not sure he had followed all of that. "So your folks are... divorced?"

"They're dead," Roxas said flatly.

"Shit, I'm--"

"Don't be sorry." Roxas shrugged, taking a sip of his soda. "It was thirteen years ago. We're fine now."

Xion's brow furrowed a little. Roxas had been old enough to remember them; surely he felt something about it? She wanted to ask, but they were in mixed company, and their parents were not exactly a topic that anyone liked to talk about.

Mercifully, Axel was perceptive enough to know not to pry there, so instead he looked between them curiously. "There's something I've been wondering, and you don't have to answer," he said tentatively, "but are you guys, like... full siblings? I remember hearing Xion's Japanese, but Roxas, no offense, you don't bleach your hair at all, right?"

"Oh, that." Roxas pushed his hair back, showing the blond roots. "We're half Atlantean. Hence the blue eyes everywhere."

"Vanitas has yellow eyes," Xion remembered. It was one of the very few things she knew about her mysterious oldest brother. "Doesn't he?"

Roxas nodded. "Super rare, but it runs in our dad's family."

"No kidding? I guess it's true about our boss, then." Axel rested his chin on his hand. "He's Atlantean too, right? Small world."

Xion looked pointedly at Roxas, who avoided her gaze. Apparently he had not mentioned to Axel that the store owner was their direct relative. Come to think of it, Xemnas himself had never spoken of it either-- he had not even acknowledged Xion as anything but a new employee. Maybe he too was unconnected to the rest of that family? She only knew them all through a few words from her grandparents and the very occasional one from her brothers, but those words were... not promising.

Maybe it was time to change the subject. "So what's your family like?" she asked Axel.

Axel wrinkled his nose. "Super white, super conservative, super into Jesus. Not the worst of that breed, but our relationship is much better with a few thousand miles between us." He grabbed the last of the fries and stuffed them into his mouth. "Anyway, you two done? Now's a great time to see the central fountain, after the day crowds but before it gets dark."

As much as Xion's poor feet were unprepared for that, she agreed. Conversation had been much less awkward when they were moving, and the topics stayed neutral.

She would have to ask Roxas some things later, if she ever found the right words.

* * *

 

For his first real judo practice in a long time, Terra thought he did okay.

He was not at all up to his old skill, of course, but he held his own against the others. He could tell Herc was going easy on him, but he mostly did not mind, since his old friend had all but tripled in size and strength since the last time they were in a dojo together.

And, okay, maybe he was a little grateful he was not getting his ass kicked in front of an audience. He found himself glancing a few times at Isa, who seemed to be watching Terra's matches in particular once the sparring began. For some reason, Terra really wanted to impress him.

Unfortunately, he did not find much opportunity to gauge Isa's opinion, lest he find himself floor again. Unlike Hercules, the others did not hold back; at the moment Cloud was making him pay for every moment of distraction.

After a particularly embarrassing fall, Cloud gave him a rare smile. "Something else you'd rather being doing?" he asked slyly, as Terra got up to face him again. "Or some--"

Herc called out the time, inadvertently cutting off whatever Cloud was saying. Terra looked at him expectantly, but the shorter man just shook his head. "Good match," he said instead, as they parted ways.

That was the last bout, so they did a few more exercises and finishing stretches before going to change. Isa waited politely near the door; Terra worried that he might be bored now that the action was finished, but he was on his phone, a tiny smile lurking in the corner of his mouth. When he caught Terra's eyes on him, he looked up, and his smile widened just a little bit, as if they'd shared a private joke.

Terra finished stretching and hurried to the bathroom as soon as was polite. He changed quickly, freshened up, and took a moment to check himself. Did he smell okay? His hair wasn't too greasy, was it?

He shook himself; he was being silly. Even at his best he could not achieve Isa's level of natural elegance, so it was pointless to try right after working out. Resigning himself to a night of feeling mildly inadequate, he gathered his things and left the bathroom.

Gaston, half naked again, was talking to Kronk by the cubbies, while the other two spoke with Isa near the front door.

"That really was good earlier," Hercules was telling him earnestly. "You're a natural at this."

"I might know someone who can lend you his gear," Cloud added thoughtfully. "You know, if you just wanted to try it out. We could use some... variety." He added a certain weight to the word that Terra did not quite understand, but Isa nodded as if he did.

"I'll consider it," he said, as his gaze shifted to Terra. His eyes traveled down and back up, from Terra's faded jeans to his nervous smile. Whatever Isa saw seemed to satisfy him, since he gave that tiny hint of a smirk again as he asked, "Ready to go?"

"Yeah," Terra agreed. "Herc, I'll-- I'll text you." He said his goodbyes to the others, promised several times to come back, and tried not to rush out the door.

Isa followed him into the warm summer evening, still smiling. It occurred to Terra that this was the first time he had seen the man in an unambiguously good mood; surely he was doing something right? He had to relax.

"Is there anywhere in particular you had in mind for dinner?" Isa asked as they got into the car. "I have no preference, so long as it keeps me out of the apartment for another hour or two."

"Why, something going on today?"

"I suppose," Isa said, then added reluctantly, "It's my birthday."

Terra nearly gaped at him. "And you didn't have anything else planned?"

"I was avoiding that. I don't like to make a big deal out of it," he explained. "And you've met my social circle."

"I've only met your roommate."

"That's the extent of it," Isa said drily. "This may shock you, but I'm not one for parties. Or any sort of special outing. Or spending time with other people, in general." Catching Terra's expression, he sighed and looked away. "I'm just being hyperbolic. Tonight's been... fun."

Terra supposed that Isa had, after all, been the one to initiate plans. "Well," he said, finally starting up the car. "At least let me treat you to dinner? If it helps, I was already planning to do that."

There was that tiny smile again. "I suppose if you _insist_..."

"And maybe a drink? Is that what normal adults do for birthdays? I don't get out much either, I wouldn't know."

"Heh. Just dinner is fine."

Making Isa laugh felt like a personal victory. Terra drove him downtown, where they had dinner at the first place with outdoor seating that they could find. Isa seemed a little reluctant to talk about himself beyond the most superficial details-- which was a damn shame, in Terra's opinion-- but he had seemed fairly interested in judo, and he liked hearing Terra explain it. By the end of the night Terra had scooted his chair over so they were sitting side-by-side, watching demonstrations on his phone while he added commentary. Isa leaned in for a closer look, his shoulder brushed against Terra's side, and Terra suddenly realized how very, very close they were.

He looked around: it was already dark out. How long had they been here?

"Something wrong?" Isa asked quietly. His face was close enough that Terra could see the tiny rings of aquamarine just past the artificial yellow in his eyes.

Terra's mouth was dry. "I was, um... just wondering what time it was. My family, you know, they might be wondering where I..."

"Oh." Isa sat up, drawing away as he did so. Terra realized he'd been resting his arm over the back of Isa's chair and took it away quickly. He hadn't meant to invade anyone's personal space.

He minimized the video on his phone to check the time, and winced. It was past nine; he had been out for almost five hours. He already had six texts from his father and sister asking where he was.

"Were you expected elsewhere?" Isa's tone was neutral, but his face seemed almost... disappointed.

"Yeah, maybe we should get going." Terra apologized to his family and promised he'd get the car home soon, while Isa signaled their server for the check.

"Sorry we had to cut this off," he said, once they were in the car again. It was only a short trip to Isa's apartment, but the lull in conversation made it feel longer. "Did-- did you have a good birthday?"

"As good as any, I suppose." Isa was resting his elbow on the car window, two fingers absently toying with his hair. Terra wondered briefly whether it felt as silky as it looked.

He cleared his throat and returned his attention to the road. "We should do this again," he suggested. "I'll plan things better next time, I promise."

"I'd like that," Isa agreed, as they pulled up on his street. The car came to a stop, Isa turned to face him, and it struck Terra how very, very strange it looked to have this phenomenally beautiful person sitting in his shoddy old car, expressing interest in spending more time together.

"Terra," he began, then seemed to think better of whatever he'd meant to say. "I had a good time tonight," he finished instead. "Thank you."

"Thanks for coming with me," Terra said. "And happy birthday." Isa was still looking at him, and Terra got the impression that he was missing something important, but the moment passed before he could figure it out.

"Well, good night," Isa said, opening the door. "See you next time the resident princess orders a pizza."

"Y-yeah, hopefully before that!" Terra smiled and waved awkwardly, then waited until Isa was inside and disappearing up the stairs before he started for home.

The smelly old car seemed bigger, somehow, when he was driving alone.


End file.
